Light Up My Darkness
by MiaoShou
Summary: AU, Light/L yaoi from outset. Raito meets a new friend in unexpected circumstances - then gets involved in a case that could affect them both personally. COMPLETE NOW :
1. Chapter 1

_Shit, I don't know if I dare to say anything at all about the updating schedule for this! XD No, better not. It popped into my head while I was blanked out waiting for an idea for Only You. So I typed it out thinking it was a one-shot and now a whole story has followed on. Which seems to happen a lot... I also got the idea for Only You that I needed so thank you writing gods, muses and all._

_This may appear to be PWP, but there is a plot eventually. It just takes a while to get there as the characters have to get to know each other a bit first :)_

_It won't all be in this format either, most of the rest will look like a regular story._

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I own only the insane ramblings of my own mind aka this story._

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PROLOGUE

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Maskelyne: I don't deny he's a good writer. I'm merely saying that his books owe a lot of their popularity to his penchant for adding gay sex and bondage to the mix.

Lumiere: you think gay sex and bondage sells books? _Getting somewhere here!_

ttlmayhem: hahahaha gay sex!!

Maskelyne: I think there are a lot of kinky readers out there.

Lumiere: I hardly think gay sex counts as being kinky any more. It's more of a valid lifestyle.

Maskelyne: Are you aware that the first Civil Partnership in England was picketed by fundamentalist nutjobs?

Lumiere: nutjobs?

Maskelyne: work it out

VaVoom: Its scottish isn't it?

Lumiere: I did owrk it out thanks. I was just admiring the succintness of the word. _God, it's hard to spell badly, who would have thought?_

Maskelyne: Succinctness, boy genius!

Lumiere: Whatev. Anyways, there are always people who resist progreess. _Go on, correct me on that one!_

Maskelyne: Lumière's typing goes down the pan when he's excited.

Lumiere: _I knew he would!_ Maskelyne is suffering from OCD watches M washing hands ten times and coming back to check the door for half an hour

Maskelyne: lol. So you think us all jumping into bed with same sex partner is progress? Sorry, progreeess.

ttlmayhem: gay sex, yeah, butt sex!!

Lumiere: Bitch. No, thats not what I said. But if you want to its not wrong.

Maskelyne: I have something you lost dear. ''''''

Lumiere: ?

Maskelyne: Apostrophes

ttlmayhem: pwnd Lume! XD XD XD

Lumiere: Funny gay.

Lumiere: guy.

Maskelyne: lol

VaVoom: are you guys gay?

ttlmayhem: hahaha gay for each other hahahahaha!!

Lumiere: private me, M

Maskelyne: What happened to dinner and a movie?

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Lumiere: That was tiresome.

Maskelyne: Indeed.

Lumiere: Interesting conversation is difficult to find online.

Maskelyne: I'm flattered.

Lumiere: You seem older than some of them

Maskelyne: No just more intelligent. I'm actually quite childish in many ways.

Lumiere: Such as?

Maskelyne: Well... I like cake.

Lumiere: A lot of people like cake

Maskelyne: Not as much as I do.

Lumiere: And you're gay?

Maskelyne: Why would you think that, Lumière?

Lumiere: You like cake?

Maskelyne: lol

Lumiere: Have you ever had cybersex?

Maskelyne: Maybe

Lumiere: It's overrated. I wish I was old enough to, you know. The real thing. _Do I sound impressionable enough? I certainly sound fairly stupid!_

Maskelyne: Real sex? Surely you're not old enough for that?

Lumiere: I think I'm old enough! _Yes, I definitely sound immature. Good._

Maskelyne: So just how old are you, Lumière?

Lumiere: Thirteen.

Maskelyne: We're the same age! Isn't that exciting?

Lumiere: Um, yes. _This guy is strange. Maybe he really is a kid._

Maskelyne: And we have so much in common! We both like to read and we both like manga and tennis!

Lumiere: Talking of manga, don't you wish you could go to Japan?

Maskelyne: I've been to Japan.

Lumiere: You have? Me too!

Maskelyne: In fact, I'm in Japan now. My dad often comes over here to work. So I'm in Japan a lot.

Lumiere: No! My dad –_ fuck, I've forgotten my damn background! Oh yeah..._ is a teacher. Teaching English. He works in Japan all of the time since he got divorced from my mom.

Maskelyne: So you're – where?

Lumiere: Tokyo.

Maskelyne: Me too!

Lumiere: We could meet _I need to find out how old he really is._

Maskelyne: I'd like that. Although it's not supposed to be a good idea to meet someone you talk to on the internet.

Lumiere: Scared?

Maskelyne: Cautious.

Lumiere: You think i'm some kind of pervert who wants to get you in a private place and rape you?

Maskelyne: Are you?

Lumiere: Fuck, no! Even if I was older than you I wouldn't hurt you.

Maskelyne: I wouldn't mind if you were older.

Lumiere: No. Me neither. Sometimes I think it'd be interesting. An older guy who knows his way around. If you know what I mean.

Maskelyne: I know exactly what you mean. Somebody who understands what to do.

Lumiere: So even if you were older than me, I wouldn't run away screaming.

Maskelyne: lol, I can't imagine Lumière screaming. He seems so confident and masculine.

Lumiere: I was thinking of M in just the same way. You inspire me with a feeling of trust. You seem to know more than I do about this kind of thing.

Maskelyne: No, I'm really very innocent. Does Lumière know the manga shop over the road from Shinjuku station?

Lumiere: Yes. _Yes! That's one of the places this guy picks up his victims! Yes! I've got you now, bastard!_

Maskelyne: We could meet there on Saturday.

Lumiere: How would I know you?

Maskelyne: I will carry the latest copy of Shonen Jump and be eating a mango flavoured lollipop.

Lumiere: Like I know what flavor it is just by looking.

Maskelyne: Good point. It's yellow.

Lumiere: Of course, you could just send me a photo of yourself. _Let's see what you do with that idea, pervert!_

Maskelyne: I don't like to send photos out randomly. But you could send me one if you like, then I can easily find you on Saturday.

Lumiere: I don't have one right now unless you want to see me one year old in a diaper.

Maskelyne: That sounds charming but I'll pass. So how will I recognise you Lumière? Unless you wish to do the same as me?

Lumiere: I don't eat sweets. I could bring the photo of me in a diaper though.

Maskelyne: You have a fetish for wearing nappies?

Lumiere: Just thought you might like to see it.

Maskelyne: I might have a photo of myself in the same embarrassing situation. I look very cute. In my cot, asleep with my thumb in my mouth.

Lumiere: That might be interesting. _What's going on here? He's – doing the same thing I'm doing... if I'm thirteen years old, no way he'd think I'd be interested in cute baby pictures!_

Maskelyne: Excuse me, Lumière. Can I ask you something?

Lumiere: Of course, M, ask me anything.

Maskelyne: Do you suspect me of being something other than what I profess to be?

Lumiere: Why would I suspect you of that, M?

Maskelyne: Because of the leading questions you're asking me.

Lumiere: What about the leading questions you're asking _me?_

Maskelyne: I think perhaps we should lay our cards on the table, Lumière.

Lumiere: You first.

Maskelyne: I am a detective. I'm looking for a murderer.

Lumiere: Pedophile rapist and murderer?

Maskelyne: Meets his victims at manga shops

Lumiere: after contacting them online

Maskelyne: Leaves them dead in a child-size bed

Lumiere: dressed in a diaper.

Maskelyne: Baby Killer.

Lumiere: Baby Killer. Shit!

Maskelyne: I gather you are working on the same case?

Lumiere: Yes. Damn!

Maskelyne: This is most amusing.

Lumiere: We're wasting each other's time, aren't we?

Maskelyne: Not necessarily. At least the result of our conversation isn't the outcome I allocated a twenty-six per cent probability to.

Lumiere: Which was?

Maskelyne: That you wanted to be private with me in order to have sex.

Lumiere: What makes you think my gayness is anything but a pretence?

Maskelyne: What makes you think I'm even a man?

Lumiere: Aren't you?

Maskelyne: Yes.

Lumiere: So for us to have sex – that would be gay.

Maskelyne: Lumière's mental faculties are astounding.

Lumiere: Sarcastic bitch

Maskelyne: And you're not gay?

Lumiere: lol. I've never been attracted to men particularly.

Maskelyne: Particularly?

Lumiere: I've never been much attracted to women either.

Maskelyne: Asexual?

Lumiere: No, I'm sexual. I just don't meet anyone that interests me.

Maskelyne: Do I interest you, Lumière? Or were you just interested in the fact that I might be a murderer?

Lumiere: I don't know

Lumiere: yes

Lumiere: you interest me.

Maskelyne: So – if I were to describe myself for instance, kissing you, would you be horrified?

Lumiere: I don't

Lumiere: Maybe not

Maskelyne: Encouraged by your half-hearted reception of my advances

Lumiere: lol

Maskelyne: I take your face between my hands and touch my lips to yours. I want to taste you. I trace your mouth with my tongue, licking you gently like gelato.

Lumiere: I'm ice cream? _What the fuck am I doing here? Hell, I'm – horny._

Maskelyne: Delicious and for the moment cold, but hopefully prone to melting.

Lumiere: I return your kiss, pressing our lips together, taking you in my arms and pulling you close to me.

Maskelyne: Your enthusiasm surprises a sigh of pleasure from me.

Lumiere: I capture your teasing tongue with mine, licking along the length of it

Maskelyne: Enjoying the damp contact, the movement of our lips on each other's

Lumiere: My tongue in your mouth

Maskelyne: The warmth of your body against mine

Lumiere: Exploring you, learning the taste of you. _Bet he tastes of cake or something sugary._

Maskelyne: Our hips gently resting against each other

Lumiere: My hands sliding under your shirt, touching skin, stroking – what are you wearing?

Maskelyne: rofl, I thought that was for phone sex? White t-shirt, blue jeans underwear.

Maskelyne: Boxers not briefs.

Lumiere: T shirt needs to go. I pull it slowly up your body and over your head, revealing ?

Maskelyne: I'm underweight but toned. Pale. One or two inches under six feet.

Lumiere: ??

Maskelyne: Black hair, grey eyes. More or less Caucasian. Pinkish nipples.

Lumiere: Nipples

Maskelyne: ??

Lumiere: lol. Asian, same height, gold-brown eyes, chestnut to auburn hair. Slim bordering on thin, reasonably muscular.

Maskelyne: Pretty. Japanese?

Lumiere: Yes.

Maskelyne: Unusual colouring.

Lumiere: You're English.

Maskelyne: What leads you to that conclusion?

Lumiere: You spell color as colour. And call diapers nappies.

Maskelyne: Observant. I have Japanese font and am bilingual if you'd rather?

Lumiere: No, English is fine.

Maskelyne: I'm half naked here, don't leave me like this!

Lumiere: lol. Mm, to return to kissing you. My mouth descending to your neck. Licking and kissing smooth pale skin.

Maskelyne: Bite me

Lumiere: Sucking the soft delicate flesh of your neck into my mouth, teeth punishing you, marking you, make you moan

Maskelyne: squirm around in ecstasy

Lumiere: Staining your porcelain whiteness with red, writing L with my teeth, you're mine

Maskelyne: Uhn, undressing you, your shirt

Lumiere: buttons

Maskelyne: Unfastened one by one

Lumiere: Pull off the sleeves

Maskelyne: Your chest, I lick you, your nipple in my mouth

Lumiere: Yes

Lumiere: hands in your hair, stroking through it

Maskelyne: Move to your other nipple, sucking at it, flicking with my tongue, nibble like tiny strawberry

Lumiere: Food fetish, ne?

Maskelyne: Mm, yes, my sweet cake Lumière, your taste in my mouth

Lumiere: Hands moving down your body, stroking, over your waist, hips, unfastening your jeans. Zipper slowly down

Maskelyne: Yes. Please. My fingers pinching your nipples, tongue in your navel twirling around in there

Lumiere: Slide your jeans down, hand rubbing over the front of your underwear, slip inside under the band

Maskelyne: Eight and a half inches, erect, happy in your hand

Lumiere: Mm, big. Stroke along it, fingers, teasing

Maskelyne: I need your pants off. Now. Unfastening.

Lumiere: Yes. Pull them off, briefs too please. Naked

Maskelyne: Hmn, hand around you

Lumiere: Not so big as yours

Maskelyne: lol. Asian

Lumiere: racist

Maskelyne: Proven fact.

Lumiere: seven and a bit more.

Maskelyne: Large for your ancestry. Nice handful

Lumiere: Nice hand. Pull you to me, holding your butt tight

Maskelyne: Underwear

Lumiere: Off with it. Push it down your nice slim hips

Maskelyne: Very slim.

Lumiere: Ok, off your scrawny ass XD

Maskelyne: So unkind!

Lumiere: Shhh, I'm sure you''re beautiful, now let me undress you, horny here

Maskelyne: Nervous

Lumiere: Let me stroke your ass. Gently. Pull you close to me, kiss you, soft gentle kisses, tongue teasing you.

Maskelyne: Tempt me. Tongue tied around yours

Lumiere: urk!

Maskelyne: Um, twined around yours.

Lumiere: Hips gently pushing together. Cocks pressed up against each other.

Maskelyne: Skin sliding together

Lumiere: Rubbing

Maskelyne: I have lube

Lumiere: Yes

Maskelyne: All over us, slippery

Lumiere: Slipping over each other, stiff and slick

Maskelyne: Leaking over you, clear drops smear over the head of your hot sexy dick

Lumiere: take them both in my hand, pumping together

Maskelyne: My fingers tickling over the glans, yours, mine, both of them, teasing

Lumiere: two shafts sliding together, moving, my hand under you holding your sack,

Maskelyne: My hand trailed through the lube and precum, wet slippery fingers around the back of you

Lumiere: Yes. Close. feel of you up against me. Your eyes on mine.

Maskelyne: Yes. Two fingers probe at entry to you, slide gently in

Lumiere: mmhhm, please. Sweaty skin pressed together oh

Maskelyne: fingers searching in you finding

Lumiere: Cumming

Maskelyne: yes

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Raito leaned back in his chair, unable to type or do anything apart from experience the waves of overpowering pleasure that swept through him, his eyes still partially focused on the screen and catching word after hot word, intensifying his climax, his seed shooting from his overheated cock and splattering over his body, over everything.

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Lumiere: Maskelyne?

Maskelyne: Here. Cleaning screen

Lumiere: lol. ok for you?

Maskelyne: Better than.

Lumiere: Yes. Glad I was working on this case at home not work XD

Maskelyne: That would be hard to explain.

Lumiere: worth it

Maskelyne: Surprising.

Lumiere: benefit of a good imagination.

Maskelyne: lol. Like yours.

Lumiere: I like yours too.

Maskelyne: Like to do more but murderer to catch.

Lumiere: hell, yes. But another time, ne?

Maskelyne: I'd like to, yes. Thank you. Arigatou gozaimasu.

Lumiere: Thank you too. Kiss you :)

Maskelyne: Kiss you, Lumière.


	2. Chapter 2

_Please note – this fic is rated M – and not just for the rampant yaoi. It's a crime mystery and there may be gore and violence._

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I do however own strawberries and as soon as I motivate myself to go out and buy eggs, there will be cake XD_

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Tonight was the night, Raito had determined. He'd spent the last two weeks working all hours on the Baby Killer case and several others and now it was time to relax. Although, thinking about it, relaxing was actually the last thing he had on his mind.

He went through to the kitchen of his apartment, put on coffee then headed for the shower, throwing his clothes into the laundry basket on the way. He wasn't unaware of the fact that he was behaving as though he was going to spend this Friday night on a real date with someone he could actually see in person. Well, it was the nearest thing he'd had to a date in – more time than he cared to think about. Probably a good idea to make the most of it.

Of course, Maskelyne wasn't aware of the fact that this would be a date as such. They'd spent the last two weeks discussing work and related subjects, more often than not exchanging ideas on the Baby Killer. Raito had to confess that their brainstorming over that case had probably led to its successful culmination a lot earlier than he would have expected working by himself. There was something about the man that challenged him to think more clearly than he found himself doing when discussing casework with the NPA detectives. Perhaps it was competitiveness. Maskelyne was obviously a genius of a calibre somewhere near Raito's own and the young man refused to allow his thinking skills to be outclassed by anybody.

However, there had been no repeat of what Raito thought of as the sex incident. He wasn't sure why. He'd thought of it often enough but had been reluctant to bring it up when there seemed to be so many more important things to discuss. Maybe Maskelyne felt the same. Maybe he regretted it. Maybe he was shy. Tonight, Raito intended to find out.

He exited the shower, toweling his hair and threw on jeans and a t-shirt. Got out the wok and made dinner, then checked the time. It was nearly seven. He took his plate over to the PC and set up the messenger, eating while he waited.

Maskelyne: Konbanwa :)

Lumiere: Good evening :)

Maskelyne: I hope I find you well?

Lumiere: At a loose end, really. We seemed to have solved all of the world's problems for now.

Maskelyne: Speak for yourself. I have plenty more.

Lumiere: I _was_ speaking for myself. I can't speak for you, since I realised I actually know nothing about you.

Maskelyne: Don't you pay attention? I'm sure such an intelligent person as yourself must know quite a lot about me by now.

Lumiere: I don't even know who you work for.

Maskelyne: All kinds of people.

Lumiere: I mean – which agency you work for.

Maskelyne: Also many and varied. Although I prefer with, rather than for.

Lumiere: You're a private investigator.

Maskelyne: Should I give you a prize for that?

Lumiere: I'm sure you could find something I'd want. But right now I'm wondering if I should have shared all the information with you that I have over the past two weeks.

Maskelyne: Yes.

Lumiere: Yes? Yes what?

Maskelyne: Yes, you should.

Lumiere: Of course you'd say that.

Maskelyne: Yes. I would.

Lumiere: lol. I don't know why I should trust you?

Maskelyne: Because you have good instincts. So if we're not going to talk about work and I don't want to talk about myself, what shall we do instead?

Lumiere: I'm glad you asked that. How about a nice bottle of virtual Crozes-Hermitage?

Maskelyne: Are you planning to get me drunk and seduce me?

Lumiere: Wishful thinking, ne?

Maskelyne: Does Lumière have attachments? Wives, girlfriends, boyfriends?

Lumiere: No. Wives? Plural? Do you think I'm Bluebeard?

Maskelyne: I didn't think Lumière had any beard. Does he?

Lumiere: No and are you deliberately being difficult?

Maskelyne: I wondered why you made no indication that you wished to repeat our previous encounter.

Maskelyne: I concluded that there was a sixty-five per cent chance that your libido was being satisfied elsewhere.

Maskelyne: I don't think I'm particularly difficult. Although I must admit I lack the experience to be completely positive about that statement.

Lumiere: You seemed experienced enough the last time!

Maskelyne: I've never kissed a man with a beard – excuse me a moment. brb

Lumiere: What are you doing now? Have you already been drinking?

Lumiere: M? Where did you go?

Maskelyne: A spider was caught in my hair. I went to release it out of the window.

Lumiere: How much hair do you have?

Maskelyne: A reasonably large amount. Last time we were intimate I was winging it. My previous attempts at cybersex have been pointless, tedious and orgasm-free.

Lumiere: So why wouldn't you want to do it with me? Unless – were you faking it?

Maskelyne: Yes dear, I threw a cup of milk over my monitor.

Lumiere: How the hell would I know _what_ you did!

Maskelyne: Because I told you.

Lumiere: You could have been lying.

Maskelyne: Is that any basis for a relationship?

Lumiere: You're avoiding having sex with me and you think we have a _relationship? _Next you'll be telling me you have a headache!

Maskelyne: I thought most men enjoy the chase more than the capture?

Lumiere: Tell me M, do you read a lot of romance novels?

Maskelyne: I wouldn't say a lot...

Lumiere: Stop flirting with me. You're no good at it. And forget about the damn chase too, I'm tired and I don't want one.

Maskelyne: As you wish. Perhaps you'd like a blowjob instead?

Lumiere: That sounds better.

Maskelyne: I hope you're not very irritated with me.

Lumiere: You keep me waiting two weeks then initiate a conversation about beards, spiders and the fact you read bodice-rippers. Why would I be irritated?

Maskelyne: I had no wish to force unwanted attentions on Lumière. But all he had to do was ask.

Lumiere: I'm asking.

Maskelyne: Then let me lay you on my bed and undress you

Lumiere: By candlelight, I think :)

Maskelyne: slowly peeling you like a beautiful fruit... candles? Romantic.

Lumiere: Someone has to be. Fruit? XD

Maskelyne: admiring each and every part of you as I slide

Maskelyne: Do you have the TV on?

Lumiere: Fuck, no, how rude do you think I am?

Maskelyne: Put NHK on now

Raito went across the room and switched on the TV where the news was airing. A windswept woman in a white quilted coat held a microphone to her lips, reminding Raito annoyingly that his prospective oral sex had been interrupted.

"After an anonymous call to NHK's Broadcasting Center," the reporter was saying, "a grisly discovery was made at the Styx Hotel by a hotel employee. Four men lying dead in a lavish suite, naked and mutilated. Police spokespersons at the scene – "

"Shit!" Raito exclaimed as the phone rang. His mobile started to beep. His pager went off.

Lumiere: Sorry, raincheck, work DX

Maskelyne: Same, later X

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An hour later, Raito attempted not to stagger out of the hotel room. Found Matsuda in the corridor, having apparently appropriated a cleaner's cart. He took one look at Raito and held out a bucket.

Raito, about to refuse, noticed that Matsuda had already made use of one of the buckets. That was the last straw. He bent over the receptacle and said goodbye to dinner.

"There are some things nobody was meant to see," Matsuda said when the younger man was finished.

"Hm," Raito said, slightly embarrassed. He hadn't been affected like that for a long time.

"What do you think, Yagami-kun," Matsuda's voice was hushed as if he was in a funeral parlor instead of a hotel corridor, "happened to the missing parts?"

"Uck," Raito fought to hold onto whatever might be left inside his digestive tract. "I'd imagine the killer took them away with him, Matsuda-san."

"A serial killer, then? They take trophies..."

"It's possible. We need to look into whether there have been any similar murders."

"That's two," Matsuda said with a grimace. "The pedophile guy and now this."

"It might not be a serial killer." Raito said. "Whoever did this might have had some – some reason to – "

"It's hard to imagine, Yagami-kun," Matsuda said, "What reason someone could have to take out somebody's brain and replace it with their, you know."

"Penis," Raito said, absently.

"I know that," Matsuda said, blushing slightly.

"Then say it, Matsuda-san, you're not five years old."

"Sorry, Yagami-kun," Matsuda said. "Penis."

"I don't mean just say it randomly, Matsuda-san, honestly!" Raito said, rolling his eyes then moving aside as Mogi came out of the door apparently in a hurry.

"That's the most unusual way of getting head I've ever seen!" he called back cheerfully as he strode down the hallway toward the elevator.

"I could have done without that image," Raito muttered.

"Was Yagami-kun perhaps looking forward to something like that tonight?" Matsuda said, sympathetically.

"Yagami-kun was interrupted just as he was about to get something like that tonight," Raito said.

"I didn't know you had a girlfriend!" Matsuda said, looking excited.

"I don't," Raito said. "It was an online thing."

"Nothing wrong with cybersex," Matsuda declared. "I do that a lot myself. When I'm between relationships."

"You think that's all it's good for?" Raito asked.

"Well, you have to be careful with someone you meet online, Yagami-kun," Matsuda said. "She could be ugly or mad or a serial killer or the wrong gender and you end up with somebody who has a, um, a penis instead of, um, you know."

"Yes, Matsuda," Raito gave up on encouraging the other man to express himself in a more adult manner. "We should get back to work."

They took a deep breath and re-entered the unpleasant atmosphere of the crime scene. Raito nodded at his father, who waved a hand as he spoke into his phone.

"Yes? Are you sure? No, I'm very pleased to hear it. It's always a privilege, of course. Yes, if you call me in around an hour when things have calmed down here, we'll work out the details."

Yagami Soichiro closed his phone and turned to the other detectives.

"It looks like we won't be working alone on this one," he said.


	3. Chapter 3

_Well, this is probably the last for this weekend. Enjoy XD_

_The text messages have some formatting probs – trying to fix..._

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. But I own a bunch of bizarre murder suspects – and a bad habit of spelling Soichiro's name wrong for some reason XD_

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"We're going to be working with L on this," Yagami Soichiro said as Aizawa came into the room, looking rather annoyed. "Apparently he's taken an interest in the case."

"L?" Matsuda's face lit up. "Yagami-kun, you've never met him, have you?"

"No," Raito said. _I wonder why L would be interested in this? Maybe it is a serial killing – maybe he knows something we don't._

"Well, nobody has," Matsuda went on. "He lives in a laptop."

"He speaks to us through a laptop," Soichiro corrected him. "He's averse to appearing in person, because he has a lot of enemies."

"Secretive," Matsuda said. "Mysterious. Enigmatic."

"I get the idea," Raito smiled. "Paranoid."

"Probably," Matsuda nodded. "And he has this weird voice, like a computer."

"That's only because he's speaking through the computer, Matsuda," Soichiro said, giving his younger colleague a look of resignation. "I'm sure he has a perfectly normal voice like everyone else if you were to actually meet him."

"Which nobody ever has," Matsuda said.

"Somebody must have," Raito said, unable to resist the urge to tease. "What about his mother and father? They must have some idea what he looks like?"

"Somehow I can't imagine L having parents," Matsuda said. "He's like a – he's like Robocop."

"You think he's a cyborg, Matsuda-san?" Raito said. "Like the Terminator?"

Matsuda looked thoughtful. "Maybe... no, like Blade Runner. I feel he's more of a Rutger Hauer than an Arnold Schwarzenegger."

"Shame if he looks like Rutger Hauer and he has to hide," Raito commented.

"Really, Yagami-kun, you sound so gay sometimes," Matsuda smiled. "And he has this strange man who carries him about."

"Like Voldemort?"

"No, because Voldemort never turns himself into a laptop, silly!"

"My popular culture references obviously need some updating," Raito smiled and turned his attention to his father who was bringing Aizawa up-to-date on events.

"There were eight of them," Soichiro was saying. "All booked in together. Four are dead. Raito, I'm going to have to ask you to stay and question the rest of them, they're all English speakers and you speak English better than the rest of us."

"No problem, otousan," Raito said. _Another sleepless night. With no sex. With gruesome corpses and vomiting. My life is a happy place._

"Matsuda and Aizawa can help you," Soichiro went on.

"Thanks, otousan," Raito said. _My joy is complete. _He pulled out his phone as it burbled out its text alert and read the message.

_Ask about suspects' sexual preferences. L_

"Don't bother to introduce yourself," Raito muttered, checking where the text had come from and finding it was number unknown. He replied to it anyway.

_What do you mean?_

"I have a text from L," he told his father, passing it over. "Did you tell him I'd be questioning the suspects?"

"No, I haven't spoken to him yet," Soichiro said. "He probably worked it out. As I said, you're the best person to do it. I imagine he has files on all of us."

"So he already knows who the suspects are," Raito said. "Or at least that they're English speakers." He glanced down at his phone as his father returned it, saw he had a reply.

_Gay, straight, bisexual, anything more inventive you can think of. L_

"That isn't what I wanted to know," Raito gave his phone a look of irritation. Replied.

_Why?_

"I'm going to meet with Watari," Soichiro said. "He's L's assistant."

"He's the one who carries him around," Matsuda put in.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Soichiro beckoned Raito, who followed him out of the room.

"You might find him a little difficult, Raito," Soichiro said as they waited for the elevator. "L, I mean. He's used to having things done his own way."

"His own way meaning he says jump and we ask how high?" Raito said.

"Something like that," Soichiro smiled. "I suppose he's used to that kind of subservience from other people." he paused as they got into the elevator. "After all, he is the world's best detective."

"Why are you mentioning this to me, otousan?" Raito asked. "Do you think I'm going to have some problem with him?"

"No, Raito, I hope not," Soichiro said as they left the elevator and walked across the hotel lobby. "It's just that – you also have your own way of doing things. And while we see that as a good thing and realise it's more productive to let you work like that, L doesn't know you. He may be – "

"Rude and demanding?" Raito suggested, holding the door open for his father.

"I wouldn't go that far," Soichiro looked thoughtful. "Actually, just between us, I would go that far. But I'm sure your manners are good enough to enable you to smooth over any little difficulties."

"Ignore his bad manners and keep him sweet?" Raito suggested as they walked over to the police car that was waiting for Soichiro.

"I knew you'd understand me, Raito," Soichiro smiled. "I've worked with L before and I don't get the feeling he's being deliberately rude. It's more as if he simply doesn't know how to behave politely."

"Cultural differences?" Raito said. "Or perhaps his self-imposed isolation?"

"The latter, I'd think," Soichiro got into the car. "I'm sure you can make allowances, Raito. I'll see you shortly."

Raito nodded and turned away.

"It's the police chief!" he heard, and glanced to his left, seeing a group of people starting to move toward him. _Damn reporters! Time to leave._

"He's gone!"

"That's his son! Yagami Raito!"

"Yagami-san, are you working on this case? Can you tell us – "

Raito ignored the questions, walking rapidly back toward the hotel doors, not running because that would be undignified. He glanced behind him, saw the reporters getting closer, a couple of uniformed police officers stepping in to intercept them, turned away and suddenly collided with someone he hadn't seen.

"I'm sorry!" Raito exclaimed, putting out his hands to steady himself and finding he had hold of – his mind suddenly and inexplicably shut down as he found himself staring into or rather down at the most unusual and exotically beautiful face he'd ever seen. Half-turned away, as if the man didn't want to meet his eyes, but still – stunning.

"Uh..." Raito muttered.

"Excuse me," the stranger's voice was deep and gentle and somehow didn't fit his shabby clothing, self-effacing posture, or the disordered strands of hair that straggled out from under the hood of his jacket. He gave one sidelong glance at Raito and went on, "I think you should hurry. The hounds are at your heels."

"Um – yes..." Raito realised he was still holding the stranger's shoulders and let go, feeling his face flush. Looked behind him to see the reporters had nearly reached him, their eyes gleaming, mouths streaming questions. Turned back to find the strange man had vanished.

"Wha – " Raito shook his head and hurried back into the hotel.

Back in the elevator he leaned against the wall as it ascended, closing his eyes. _I am so gay! It's all that damn Maskelyne's fault! One moment with him and I'm staring at men on the street and wondering what it'd be like to – but anybody would have, wouldn't they? I mean – he was – well, gorgeous. I never saw anybody – I can't think about this now! I have a case to solve! And a cantakerous detective to appease._

He took out his phone and found no reply from L to his earlier question. That seemed par for the course from what his father had said. L probably expected him to do whatever he was told without asking for reasons.

"We've set up in an empty room on this floor," Aizawa was waiting for Raito as he got out of the elevator. "Matsuda's checking out the victims, so you and I can question the suspects."

"Are you okay, Aizawa-san?" Raito asked. The man didn't look too happy.

"My wife's not very pleased," Aizawa said. "She thought I was going to be home for the weekend."

"I know what you mean," Raito said. "It must be difficult for you."

Aizawa just shook his head and led Raito to their new headquarters.

"I'm looking for information on these guys, Yagami-kun," Matsuda said, from his position in front of a laptop. "It's all PhD this, MA that, MSc the other, MD, LLB, LLM, MBA, and a whole bunch of letters I don't even know the meaning of. These victims are really intelligent! Well, they were until someone took their brains away."

"That's interesting, don't you think?" Raito said. "I wonder if they were chosen because of their high intelligence? If their brains were removed to make some kind of point?"

"What, use it and lose it?" Mogi muttered, slipping on his coat. "I'm going to round up that damn TV crew that was at the crime scene, Yagami-kun. They need to be fingerprinted, God knows what they might have touched."

"Yes, thanks, Mogi," Raito said. "Aizawa, let's go talk to somebody – we may as well do them in alphabetical order, let's start with – Thomas Duhamel?"

"He's a professor at Oxford University in England," Matsuda said. "Mag – Magdalen College..."

"It's pronounced Maudlin," Raito said. "What's he a professor of?"

"English," Matsuda said. "That's handy, Yagami-kun, he's bound to understand you. Can I come with you? I've never met an English professor before. Not one that's actually English, anyway. Why do they call them Fellows?"

"It's just a traditional term, Matsuda-san. It's like someone having tenure, it means they're a permanent member of the staff."

Raito sighed as he went out into the corridor, his ill-assorted team behind him, one sulking, one babbling.

"He's in room 314," Matsuda said, excitedly.

"Thank you, Matsuda-san," Raito said, hand raised to knock on the door of 314.

The door swung open to reveal a rather startling sight. A man of around thirty-five, dressed quite normally in black jeans and a navy sweatshirt that was liberally decorated with what looked like dinner and perhaps a few other meals as well. The casual effect was ruined by the suburban-grandmother mop of pink permed hair that swept around his piercing dark eyes.

"Good morning!" he exclaimed. "I'm – oh, it's evening! Good evening! You must be the stalwart defendants of law and order! My goodness, you're younger than I expected!"

"And you are – " Raito said_. His hair! Don't look at his hair! Look at his face! Not – damn! I'm looking at the hair!_

"Tom Duhamel," the man said. "Is something wrong? Oh!" he reached up and swept the hair off his head, revealing a flattened and lank mess of dark curls. "My wig," he explained.

"Your – wig," Raito repeated.

"I write romance novels for a hobby," Duhamel said cheerfully. "This helps me get into the mood."

"Really," Raito said, feeling a bit at a loss.

"I'm Lois Lexington," Duhamel leaned toward Raito, whispering confidentially.

"You never!" Matsuda exclaimed. "I have – I mean my mother has all your books!"

"My sister reads them too," Raito confessed.

"That's just your hobby?" Matsuda looked amazed. "But – you're a bestseller! You must have made a lot of money out of all that passion and romance and heaving bosoms and palpitating – "

"I think we get the idea, Matsuda-san," Raito interrupted.

"Yes, it's lucrative," said Duhamel, "but money's not that important. I think of it as a hobby because really, who can take all those heaving bosoms and straining codpieces seriously? But do come in and have some tea!"

The detectives followed the ebulliant author into his room, introduced themselves and were served tea by two long-haired Japanese boys wearing what appeared to be loincloths made of chain.

"These are Hugin and Munin," Duhamel explained. "My pets – they're so helpful around the house. Or the hotel room. Mind that yucca, dear, it has sharp leaves, I can't think what they're doing putting something like that in a public place. I suppose you want to know what I know about the murders?"

"What do you know about the murders?" Raito asked.

"Absolutely nothing," Duhamel said. "Biscuit? Scone?"

"No, thank you," Raito said. "If you don't mind, Mr Duhamel, would you tell me why exactly the eight of you that booked in here together came to Japan?"

"It was my idea," Duhamel said, throwing himself down on a couch, then squeaking and removing the hardback book he'd sat on. "Ow, that has sharp corners. I'm a Japanophile – I've been to Tokyo quite a few times so we thought we'd all come. And Marc Shimabukuro, God rest his soul, had Japanese ancestry, so he was quite excited about it. Who would have thought he'd end up dead in the land of his forefathers."

"He was the one who worked for NASA," Matsuda hissed across as Duhamel pulled a handkerchief from his sleeve and blew his nose.

"I'm very sorry for your loss," Raito said. "Could I ask, when you say all of you, what exactly is your connection?"

"Well, we're just a group of friends, you know," Duhamel said. "We met online and at conferences, that kind of thing and we do things together. Sometimes. And this was one of the things we decided to do. We went to Thailand together a couple of years ago. Last year we went to San Francisco. We went to New York City too, but that doesn't really count as some of us already live there."

"I see," Raito said, beginning to think that he did. "Your trips – I notice that they're to places that could be considered gay-friendly?"

"Really?" Duhamel gave Raito an innocent look. "Well, I make no secret of anything but I'm not going to out my friends, you'll have to ask them for yourself. Talking of which – what time do you get off duty?"

"I really don't think I do, thank you, Mr Duhamel," Raito smiled. "Not with all this going on."

"I can wait," Duhamel said, shamelessly ogling.

"I'm, uh, spoken for," Raito said. _Does an online relationship that's only ever got sticky once actually count? It would have been twice, though – if it wasn't for these murders. He definitely seems interested in me. I think it counts._

"You _are?"_ Matsuda leaned across Aizawa interestedly.

"So I gather you were all going to have dinner together, in Mr Shimabukoro's room?" Raito ignored Matsuda.

"Not all of us," Duhamel said. "We were going to get together properly tomorrow. People were still arriving, unpacking and who knows what. That's how it ended up being just the four of them. I would have been there, but my flight was delayed. I was still floating around in the ether – I hate to fly! Absolutely hate it! I always take a ferry if I'm going anywhere that's conceivably accessible by water – "

"Can you give me your flight number?" Raito asked.

"Of course, dear, I have all the details – somewhere – " He rummaged around under the table and came out with what Raito decided to charitably describe as a man-purse although he was sure he'd never seen one in magenta before.

Raito took the tickets and papers the man handed to him.

"We'll need you to give us your clothes," Matsuda said.

"I thought you'd never ask!" Duhamel exclaimed, grabbing the hem of his sweatshirt and starting to lift it up.

"I don't think we need those right now," Raito said hurriedly. "Whoever the murderer is, they must be in quite a mess, and I don't see any blood on you."

"There is some egg there," Matsuda pointed.

"Oh, that's just my breakfast," Duhamel said.

"That's all for now," Raito said, getting up. "We'll probably need to speak to you again – "

"Oh, any time!" Duhamel said, showing them to the door with a smile. "Especially if you're handling things personally, Yagami-san!"

"I, er – " Raito began but was saved the necessity of a reply as Duhamel took Aizawa by the arm.

"Is your hair a wig too?" the eccentric author asked.

"No!" Aizawa spluttered, pulling away. "It's my own!"

"My, it's very – bouffant, isn't it!"

Raito, his face aching from restraining laughter, nodded to the professor and swept his entourage out of the room. He leaned against the wall for a brief moment once the door had closed after them and breathed a sigh of relief. "Matsuda-san!" he said. "Why did you ask him to take his clothes off?"

"I was just being kind, Yagami-kun," Matsuda said. "I thought he'd like to undress in front of you."

"I can see now why they say genius is next-door to insanity!" Aizawa exclaimed.

"I beg your pardon?" Raito said.

"Not you, Yagami-kun!" Aizawa said. "I don't think of you as a madman. You always seem so normal."

Raito opened his mouth to comment on that then fished out his phone again as it let him know he had a text. _If this is L again – _

_Am I ever going to get your dick in my mouth?_

Somehow, Raito decided that this message probably _wasn't_ from L.


	4. Chapter 4

I had a choice of sleeping or writing another chapter. Here's the next chapter XD

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I still don't own a strawberry cake either as I was too busy writing to cook it._

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

"It's room 317 next," Matsuda said. "Juste Fisher. He's a lawyer from New York."

"Give me a minute," Raito said, paging to the number his text had come from and saving it. He brought it up again, stared at it for a moment, bit his lip and pressed call.

"I didn't expect that, Raito," the voice spoke over a rather crackly phone line.

"I didn't expect you to have my number," Raito said. "Or my name."

"Don't you think I'm any good at my job?"

"I think you're stalking me," Raito said, smiling.

"Do you object?"

"No. But I really am working. And likely to be so all night."

"Pity," said Maskelyne. "We could have had phone sex. I've never done that. Have you?"

"Once. By accident." Raito said.

"How did you manage that?"

"A girlfriend I used to have. She called me and one thing led to another."

"Any good?"

"Terrible," Raito confessed. "She kept giggling every time she said anything even remotely suggestive, so I couldn't hear her properly."

"That must have been confusing."

"It left me with a very vague impression of what body part was going where."

There was laughter from the phone and some hissing and sputtering noises. Raito shook it but there was no improvement.

"I'd better let you go," Maskelyne said. "Call me or email me when you're free. I'll make myself available."

"You hold off for two weeks and suddenly you're desperate?" Raito teased.

"I was desperate all along, but I didn't want to push it."

"Really?" Raito lowered his voice. "Would you rather I was doing the pushing?" he heard what might have been a small gasp from the phone and grinned.

"I don't really think I mind too much about who does what, Raito," Maskelyne said, after a moment. "Are you very particular about it?"

"I don't know," Raito thought about that. _If it was me doing that to him... mm, yes! But what if it was him doing that to me? Hm... surprisingly arousing..._ he turned his back on the other two detectives who were watching him from further down the corridor. "I don't think I'm _very _particular," he said.

"Then let us leave it open and see where it takes us," Maskelyne murmured.

"Why does that sound so – dirty?" Raito said, half-laughing.

"Because you want it to, Raito," Maskelyne said.

"Yes," Raito agreed. "I do. I wish I didn't have to go."

"But you do," Maskelyne said. "I'll look forward to resuming this when you're not so rushed."

"Yes. Goodbye Ma – at least give me something to call you that isn't your screen name."

"Ryuuzaki."

"Ryuuzaki, then. I'll speak to you soon."

"Hai. Sayonara, Rai-chan."

Raito ended the call, staring at his phone bemusedly. _Rai-chan? We've got very friendly, haven't we? He reminded me of someone at the end there. When he was speaking Japanese – hard to tell, with all that crackling going on. Hope my phone's not broken. I can't believe what I said to him. Now I'm not only gay, I'm potentially submissive. I'm not sure how many more of these surprises I can stand..._

"Was that your girlfriend?" Matsuda asked as Raito joined the others.

"I don't have a girlfriend," Raito said, absently. "Aizawa-san, why don't you go back and ask Duhamel if you can check his room – look for anything bloodstained or messy."

"Or a big saw that he cuts people's skulls open with," Matsuda offered helpfully.

"Why me?" said Aizawa. "Why couldn't we do it while we were there?"

"I was about to laugh at him and I thought that'd be rude," Raito said.

"You can compare hairdressers with him, Aizawa-san," Matsuda said.

"I don't want to compare anything with him," Aizawa protested. "What if he makes a move on me?"

"You're a police officer," Raito said. "Subdue him with your handcuffs."

"He'd probably enjoy that," Aizawa muttered as he left them.

"I thought I was dealing with the evidence and so on, Yagami-kun?" Matsuda said.

"I thought you'd like seeing the suspects more, Matsuda-san," Raito said, knocking on the door of room 317.

After a few minutes, the door opened slightly.

"Yes?" a voice said.

"Hello? We're police detectives," Matsuda said. "We've come to ask you a few questions about the tragic murders that took place today."

"ID," a hand reached out from inside the room.

Raito and Matsuda took out their ID cards and put them into the hand, which withdrew for a few moments then reappeared and handed them back.

"Come in," they were told.

Matsuda rolled his eyes at Raito as they opened the door and Raito had to admit he felt like doing the same.

The suite was as sumptuous as all the others on this floor, and had one occupant, a blond man who was sitting on a couch at the opposite end of the room. Raito noticed Matsuda looking round to see who had actually opened the door, but there was nobody else in view.

"Juste Fisher?" Raito said, deciding to ignore the magic trick.

"No, he's in the shower," the blond said. "Aymery Lavelle."

"Oh, we want to talk to you as well!" Matsuda said. "Look, Yagami-kun, he's on the list."

"I'm sure he is, Matsuda-san." Raito was beginning to wonder if bringing Matsuda along had been one of his better ideas. Went into the room, turning his head as he heard music somewhere but couldn't place where it was coming from.

"Please sit down," Lavelle said, waving his arm at a couple of chairs near his couch. "I have an alibi, would you like to hear about that first?"

Raito took a seat and had a good look at the man. He looked to be somewhere in his late twenties. His skin was pale in a way that spoke of a life spent indoors, he had straggly blond hair which would probably have been attractive if he'd ever put a comb through it, was dressed in white clothes that looked like some kind of martial arts uniform that had seen better days and he had the bluest eyes Raito had ever seen. He unconsciously leaned forward to get a better view.

"They're not contacts," Lavelle said. "I'm descended from a number of Scandinavians and a Siamese cat."

"Excuse me," Raito said, rather embarrassed to have been caught staring.

"No problem," Lavelle said. "I get that all the time. When I meet people. Which I normally don't. Do you want my alibi or don't you?"

"Yes, why not?" Raito said, resigning himself to the fact that he wasn't going to get any kind of normal response from what was shaping up to be a bunch of misfit genii. Maybe Fisher himself would be more – ordinary – when he came out of the shower. Then realised that the musical sounds he was hearing were a combination of running water and somebody singing Puccini's O Dolce Mani – in both the soprano and tenor parts. That didn't bode well for normality. Or masculinity, he reflected, as the voice soared into the ozone layer.

"I arrived in this suite at six minutes past nine this morning," Lavelle was saying. "I started work on an article for Scientific American on the difference in symptomology between intrinsic autism and that due to Rett syndrome. I typed ten thousand words before the uproar began. I didn't have time to indulge in a killing spree as well."

"You're a doctor?" Raito asked.

"I'm a psychologist and criminal profiler. I have a medical degree."

"Would anyone be able to confirm your activities today?"

"Marc Shimbabukuro came in at nineteen minutes past twelve and stayed for forty-three minutes, but since he's dead, you can't ask him," Lavelle said. "I suggest you check my computer log and the times my temporary files were created in Word. You can ascertain that there are nobody's prints but mine on my laptop." he finished, his expression suggesting that anyone daring to lay a finger on his laptop without permission would find themselves left with only nine.

"That's very helpful," Raito said, then turned as the bathroom door opened. _Not again! Not another one! Why is the world suddenly full of cute dark-haired Caucasians? And why do I like all of them? _

He had to admit rationally, however, that not many people would be able to resist the sight of the curly-haired young man clad only in a towel who was positively slinking toward the couch and smiling at him – hungrily.

"This is Juste," Lavelle said. "These are policemen. They want you."

"Everybody wants me," Fisher purred and smiled and threw himself on the couch, legs slightly apart, the short towel riding up until Raito could see practically everything he didn't want to.

"Ask me something," Fisher gave Raito another predatory glance as there was a knock at the door and it opened before anyone could answer it.

"I'm not going near that man again, Yagami-kun!" Aizawa exclaimed as he came in. "He's mad! He keeps asking me about you and your – personal habits!"

"You mean, like, does he brush his teeth and so on?" Matsuda asked.

"No, like his, his preferences," Aizawa said. "I'm not getting into it, Matsuda-san, I've had enough already!" He caught sight of Fisher at that point and took a step backward.

"You should put some clothes on, Juste," Lavelle said. "You're distracting our visitors."

"I'm not distracted," Aizawa said. "I'm married."

"I'm not distracted!" Matsuda said. "I'm heterosexual."

Raito became aware of all eyes turning toward him.

"Since I'm not aesthetically challenged," he said, "I have no problem with appreciating the human form when it's so blatantly put on display."

"I'm not blatant!" Fisher exclaimed, getting up from the couch. "Anyway, I was just about to get dressed." He huffed and left the room.

Raito grinned then rolled his eyes as his phone demanded attention. Another text.

_Results? L_

"Pfft!" Raito said, giving the phone a black look. _He certainly is rude! And impatient!_

"You're working with L?"

Raito looked up, saw Lavelle peering over his shoulder.

"Are you reading my private texts?" he said.

"Yes," Lavelle said. "Here, give it to me, I'll put him in his place."

"You know him?"

"I've worked with him before," Lavelle said.

"Let me see what you put before you send it," Raito handed over his phone and waited while Lavelle typed, then examined it as the other man held it out to him.

_Juste has fallen in love with your detective who is far too beautiful for you to treat him so cruelly. A_

"Don't send – " Raito began. " – that!" he finished as Lavelle pressed send.

"A problem?" Lavelle asked.

"I'm not _his_ detective!" Raito said.

"Just a figure of speech," Lavelle said.

Raito sighed, decided to just get on with it. "Do you and Mr Fisher share this room?" he asked.

"Certainly not," Lavelle said. "We were merely commiserating with each other on the deaths of our companions."

Raito raised an eyebrow, almost feeling sorry for Fisher having only this apparently emotionless man to offer him sympathy in his hour of need.

"He's very upset," Lavelle added.

"Are you?" Raito said.

"Of course." Lavelle said coldly. "I don't meet many people I can talk to. Now I've lost four of them. I'm distressed."

"You don't show it," Raito commented.

"No. I don't." Lavelle said.

"I'm here," Fisher came out of his bedroom, dressed fairly normally, Raito was relieved to see. "What do you want to know?"

"You don't mind if we look around both your rooms?" Raito said. "Just to eliminate – "

"There's no need for the lies and platitudes," Lavelle said. "Look all you want to."

"So, Mr Fisher, could you give me an account of your movements today?" Raito asked.

"I went out..." Fisher thought for a moment. "I went to a bar... I picked up a man... I went home with him and danced the horizontal tango."

"You had sex?" Raito checked.

"Well, yes," Fisher said.

"All afternoon?"

"Not with the same man," Fisher said.

"Pardon?" Raito said.

"I can give you a list," Fisher said with a smile. "But I don't know what good it'll do you, as I'm sure they didn't give me their proper names. I can't imagine any parents unkind enough to call their son Fu Fu, can you?"

"Anime addicts?" Matsuda suggested.

"A – list?" Raito said, slightly hung up on that idea.

"There were only four of them," Fisher said.

"Four." Raito said_. Four men in one afternoon? Why? I can't even get to spend long-distance time with one!_

"I like Asian babes," Fisher said, leering at Raito.

"I wouldn't have guessed," Raito said. "So basically, you were out, and you, Mr Lavelle, were too busy to be aware of the murders, is that what you're telling me?"

"Yes," said Lavelle. "Sorry we can't be of more help. Are we finished now?"

Raito's phone picked that moment to beep and he took it out. Another text.

_Rather arrogant of you to presume I'd know who you are just from one letter, Aymery. As for my detective, he should be aware that Juste is a slut who will doubtless give him a nasty social disease should he pursue any kind of relationship with him. L_

Raito shook his head and passed the phone to Lavelle.

"As if he didn't start the one letter affectation," Lavelle said. "That second part is true, you know."

"I've no intention of doing such a thing!" Raito protested. "I have someone already!"

"Good for you," Lavelle said in a dreary tone of voice. Raito glanced at him and caught a flash of something like pain in the man's eyes, quickly hidden.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Raito said.

Lavelle looked at him. "Thank you," he finally said, nodding in acknowledgment. Then looked up in annoyance as there was another knock on the door.

Aizawa went to answer it, revealing Yagami Soichiro.

"Raito, can I speak to you?" he said.

Raito went over to the door.

"L's here," Soichiro said. "He'd like a word with you."

"I've still got one person to see," Raito said.

"Don't worry, I'll take over with that," Soichiro said.

"You're welcome to it, otousan," Raito muttered. "If you've ever had any complaints about me, you're going to be grateful for me after you meet this lot!"

"But Raito, I've never had any complaints about you," Soichiro smiled and patted his son on the back. "You'll find him in the room we're using."

Raito headed down the corridor then stopped as he saw Duhamel, apparently waiting by the elevators. He waited a moment, but the elevator went straight past their floor without stopping, which Duhamel didn't seem to mind at all_. He's waiting for something else then. What? Shit, is he waiting for me? Fuck! _

He slipped off his shoes and sidled down the corridor as rapidly and quietly as possible, managing to reach the door of their headquarters room before Duhamel turned around and saw him. Opened it and quickly slid inside.

"Are you hiding from somebody?" the robotic voice startled Raito and he dropped his shoes. On his foot.

"Ow!" he exclaimed, trying to rub his foot and put his shoes back on at the same time, meanwhile eyeing the laptop with the big gothic L on it. "No. Well, yes. One of the suspects – he seems to have taken a liking to me."

"So I've heard," L's inhuman voice commented.

"No, not that one," Raito said. "This is another one."

"You seem inordinately popular. Which other one?"

"Duhamel," Raito said, going over to the table and taking a seat near the laptop. "The one with the wig."

"Yes, I know which one he is," L said. "I can't imagine Yagami-kun would care to date a man that calls himself Lois Lexington in his spare time."

"I don't want to date any of them, L!" Raito exclaimed.

"Does Yagami-kun already have a love interest?" L said. "I merely ask because I do not wish to deal with further resentment of the Aizawa type for taking him away from his nearest and dearest."

"Uh – " Raito felt his face growing hot. _I'm blushing. I'm blushing in front of a laptop. I really can't believe this. A laptop is asking me about my love life. And I'm answering it._ "Nothing serious, L, no. But I'm certainly not looking for someone. Especially somebody who's a suspect in a murder case."

"You should not blame them for trying," L's computerized voice said. "I'm sure nobody could resist attempting to have a closer experience with Yagami-kun's obvious charms."

"Uh, yes. Thank you." _Is the fucking laptop coming on to me now? No. No, I'm imagining it. This is L. He's the best detective in the world. He could have anybody he wants._

"Would Yagami-kun like to tell me what he has found out so far?" L went on. "And then I can inform him as to what he should do about it."

"I think I'm quite capable of making my own decisions as to what I should do about it, L," Raito snapped, out of patience. "Also I'd like to know why you're involved in this case. Have there been other similar murders that we should know about?"

"I do not see why Yagami-kun needs to know – "

"How do you expect me to help you if you won't tell me things?" Raito interrupted.

"Yagami-kun is helping me?" L's voice, toneless, still managed to convey irritation. "I thought the reverse was true."

"Yes, of course," Raito said. "Because your laptop is going to grow four little legs and wander around the hotel questioning suspects and looking for evidence."

"Yagami-kun makes a good point," L conceded. "Also he is extremely attractive when he is angry."

"What!" Raito exclaimed, finding himself shuffling his chair away from the laptop.

"It is merely an observation, Yagami-kun," L said. "I can assure you that my laptop is not going to grow arms and lips and – the other necessary organs and attempt to molest you with them."

Raito stared at the screen, picturing that. Then burst into laughter.

"Yagami-kun is also very pretty when he laughs," L remarked as the giggles subsided.

"Yagami-kun is not _pretty_ at any time," Raito corrected him. "So, are you going to tell me what you know, or am I going to have to blunder around in the dark until I find out for myself?"

"I am sure that Yagami-kun is capable of bringing light to anybody's darkness," L said. "But enough of this flirting, if Yagami-kun can manage to put his mind back on the case, we have work to do."

"..." _What? Now he's behaving as if I'm the one that started pulling random compliments out of the air! I mean – what would I say? Nice screen? Can I fondle your keys? Let me trace the outline of your L? Hm, actually that is quite sexy – what the _fuck_ is wrong with me today!_

"Very well," L was saying as Raito dragged his attention back to the here and now. "Yagami-kun has convinced me that there is some advantage to us pooling our information."

"I did?" _How did I do that? By getting angry with him? Obviously he's not used to anyone standing up to him... maybe it's a pleasant change for him. Cue argumentative Raito..._

"There has been one previous murder of this type in New York City," L said. "I know that isn't much to go on, but the circumstances are so similar I cannot help but theorise that they are related. I will have Watari bring you the case notes."

"Some of our suspects are from New York," Raito said, putting his elbow on the desk and leaning his head on his hand. "Fisher and I think the one we haven't seen yet, Velasquez."

"Aymery Lavelle, too," L said.

"He sounds English," Raito said.

"He is, but he lives in New York." L paused then went on, "Marc Shimbabukuro was his significant other. I expect he's quite distraught."

"It's hard to tell," Raito said. "But he did seem upset at one point. I wondered if he had some close involvement with one of the victims."

"I suggest you have your team refrain from tasteless police humor around him," L suggested. "He has a very bad temper when he's roused. Much like yourself."

Raito, about to reply in a fashion that proved L's statement true, turned as the door opened. A strange looking figure in a trenchcoat with its collar turned up and a hat pulled down over his face came through, carrying a tray.

"Here are the case notes Yagami-san requires," he murmured, pulling some folders out from under his arm. "L also requested me to serve you coffee – unless you would prefer tea?"

"No, coffee's fine, thank you very much," Raito said, getting up to take the tray. "Thank you, L," he added, when Watari had gone.

"We cannot have Yagami-kun falling asleep when there is so much work to be done," L droned. "Although, if he becomes desperate for rest, he may observe that there is a bed in this room. So if he should wish to take off all of his clothes and lie upon it – "

"No, thank you!" Raito interrupted. "I'm fine, L. I don't need to sleep! Not at all!"


	5. Chapter 5

I was feeling... frisky. And so was Raito. So I wrote this XD

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I think, however, I may own my own personal gutter in which my mind resides XD_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

"Perhaps Yagami-kun would like to sleep for a couple of hours until the rest of the evidence becomes available to us."

The voice dragged Raito back from the report he'd been typing on the suspects. "Hm?"

"We shall have a conference at seven to discuss whether we have actually found anything useful or not," L added.

"Sleep?"

"It seems as though Yagami-kun has already achieved that state," L said. "Does he require a toothbrush or any other items to make him comfortable?"

"I have one with me, just in case," Raito said_. What the hell does that sound like? Yes, I'm Raito the slut from Slutsville._ "In case I have to work late, I mean." _Why do I even care what he thinks?_

"I did not imagine that Yagami-kun carries toiletries around with him in case he should get lucky and end up in someone else's bed," L droned.

"Oh. Good." said Raito, deciding he was too tired to care. He got up and went over to the bathroom door. "Good night, L."

"Good night, Yagami-kun," the laptop replied.

Raito quickly brushed his teeth and washed, then returned to the main room. To find the laptop staring at him, still with its L symbol showing. _Does it always do that? Or is he still there?_

"L?" he ventured.

"Yes, Yagami-kun?"

"Are you – I mean, I'm going to bed now."

"Yes, Yagami-kun."

"So, uh, are you – going somewhere else?"

"No, Yagami-kun, I have a lot of work to get through."

Raito stared at the laptop in puzzlement. _Should I turn it around so he can't see me? No, that would be ridiculous. Maybe he's not even looking... but what he said earlier – oh, fuck it, if he wants a show, let him have one._

Raito started unbuttoning his shirt. He could feel the intensity of the laptop's glowing screen staring at him like a big eye, though he thought that was probably his imagination. He left the shirt unbuttoned and kicked off his shoes, sat on the bed to take off his socks and folded them neatly onto a chair. _I wonder if he's really watching? I could – but I shouldn't – well, maybe I will..._

He unbuttoned his cuffs and slid his shirt off slowly, hung it over the back of the chair. Slowed down even further as he gradually raised his t-shirt up his body before finally slipping it off over his head. Half closed his eyes and sighed comfortably. Gave a brief flickering glance at the laptop through his eyelashes. _I hope he's enjoying himself. Wait till the pants come off! Honestly, I was never like this before. What's got into me? Ha, after what I was thinking earlier, perhaps it's a case of what do I want to get into me? Oh God, now I'm hard, I thought I was too tired for that. Looks like L's going to see more than he expected!_

He stood and unfastened his belt. Moved on to the button of his pants. Took his phone out of his pocket and put it on the bedside table. Now for the zipper! Raito was sure a zipper had never been lowered so slowly in the whole of recorded history. _Well, I don't have a lot to work with here. No leather pants, no nipple tassels – can you even put those on men? I'll definitely have to look that up on the internet... But without any of that, I'll have to make do with what I've got..._

He glanced at the laptop again, licked his lips – bit his lip, he'd been told on several occasions how attractive that was – and slid his pants down slowly. Repressed a grin as he definitely heard a small strangled sound from the direction of the screen.

"Mmm," Raito murmured to himself, but loud enough to be heard. "Ahhh."

Pants folded onto the chair, it was time for the main attraction. Raito paused for a moment, sanity taking a moment to ask him if he really wanted to play this kind of game with someone who was more than a colleague but less than an employer. He dismissed the doubt, sure he could handle any consequences that might ensue. After all, it was L that had chosen to watch him, wasn't it? _If he doesn't like it he can turn himself off, ne?_

He turned away from the glowing screen, picked up his phone as if to check something, then put it down again. With his back to the laptop, he hooked his thumbs into the edge of his boxers and pulled down first one side, then the other. Then slowly slipped them down over his butt_. I just realised, I haven't seen my butt for a while. Not since that time I was in the changing room with the double mirrors – what if it's not as attractive as it used to be?_

"Nnnh!" the laptop remarked, quite audibly.

Raito smiled_. Looks like the butt's as good as ever..._

He turned around, stood as if in thought, giving L's calligraphy a damn good full frontal look, then climbed into bed, pulling the covers half-way up his body and stretching his arms out to either side. _If this doesn't look inviting I don't know what the hell would._ Turned toward the laptop and smiled. Closed his eyes.

Slitted them open a moment later as something in the room seemed to have changed. The L had gone from the screen. _Huh? Where did he go? Has he broken?_

"L?" _Did I offend him? No, he'd have gone sooner if he didn't like it. Maybe he's suddenly found he needs to take a bathroom break._

Raito chuckled to himself at that thought, then his eyes fell on the phone beside his bed_. It's too late. I can't call him at this time. I'll wake him up and he'll be pissed off._

He found his hand reaching out despite himself. Picked up the phone. _He probably doesn't take his phone to bed – if he's asleep he may not even hear it. Although – he's a detective. I take my phone to bed. He probably does too. Damn! Okay, if it rings more than twice, I'll turn it off._

He sat up, found the number in his contacts and called it. Listened to it ring. Once...

"Has Raito finished working now?" Ryuuzaki's voice.

Raito smiled. "You're not asleep?"

"I was just about to take a shower. I'm naked."

"Mhnn!" Raito pushed the covers off himself. "I'm in bed. Also naked."

"Perhaps I'm not quite dirty enough yet to make it worthwhile having a shower."

"Maybe you need to work up a sweat," Raito suggested. "Give yourself something to wash off."

"I'm sure you could help me with that, Raito," Ryuuzaki murmured, his voice low and sensual.

"Oh God, yes!" Raito exclaimed.

"You sound a little – desperate?"

"I've been thinking about sex all day," Raito explained. "Well, not all day, because I've been working, but it keeps coming into my head. At inopportune moments."

"I know exactly what you mean, Raito." Ryuuzaki said. "You haven't been far from my thoughts all day either."

"And I keep seeing people who look like you," Raito said. "I mean, like you told me you look. Which I hope is the truth, because I would hate to get a fixation on the wrong body type."

Ryuuzaki laughed. "It's true. If I was going to make it up, I'd go for something more universally attractive. Michelangelo's David perhaps. Kurt Russell."

"You like Kurt Russell?"

"He seems intelligent. And he has a sense of humor. I like that in a man. Did you see the scene in Tango and Cash where he cross-dresses?"

"You like cross-dressing?" Raito said, dubiously.

"Only when it's ridiculous," Ryuuzaki said. "Although I do think people should be free to wear whatever they want."

"You're not conventional."

"In some ways, yes, in others, no." Ryuuzaki said. "Who are these people who look like me?"

"There were only two of them," Raito said. "One was connected with the case I'm working on so not someone I'd want to get involved with – also he turned out to be offputtingly slutty."

"Good," Ryuuzaki said.

"Hm?"

"If you run off with a slutty man, Raito, I will be disappointed."

"Aren't you a slutty man, Ryuuzaki?" Raito smiled into his phone.

"I could be," Ryuuzaki admitted. "In a strictly monogamous kind of way, of course. Although – that should be monoandrous, should it not?"

"No, monogamy means an exclusive marriage – you're thinking of the difference between polyandry and polygyny – multiple husbands or wives."

"My Greek always was appalling," Ryuuzaki said. "Who was the other one?"

"I have no idea," Raito said. "Just someone I ran into in the street."

"Literally?"

"Yes, actually. I was in a hurry to avoid the press and didn't look where I was going. He was just – there." Raito stared into space, picturing the face he'd seen earlier. "If you looked like him, I wouldn't complain."

"You found this man – attractive?"

"Totally," Raito confessed. "I never saw anyone like him."

"Raito is fascinated by the unusual?"

"I've had more than enough of unusual today," Raito said. "My case seems to involve a number of people who are a bit too unusual. And two of them seem to have got quite predatory about me."

"I have some sympathy for that point of view," Ryuuzaki said.

"I'm sleeping in a hotel room I daren't go out of in case I get molested," Raito exaggerated. "Even one of my, uh, co-workers has been making suggestive comments to me."

"What a shame I cannot be there to protect you," Ryuuzaki said and Raito could hear the smirk in his voice.

"I'm not sure I need protecting, as such," the young detective backpedalled.

"One may not need a thing, but still enjoy having it," Ryuuzaki said.

"I'm not in the habit of being dependent on others," Raito said. "Perhaps Ryuuzaki is looking for somebody a little more uke than myself?"

"No, I'm not looking for anybody else," Ryuuzaki said. "If Raito sees himself as the aggressive seme of the two of us, I am willing to accomodate his wishes."

"I didn't say that!" Raito said. "I'm not aggressive – well, yes, I probably am aggressive. But – I'm not – what do you really want, anyway?"

"I must admit I am quite taken with the idea of having total domination over Raito's beautiful body," Ryuuzaki admitted.

"Uhnn!" Raito scowled, annoyed at his involuntary response to the other man's suggestion. _What's he going to think now, that's what I want too?_ "I may not _have_ a beautiful body," he temporized.

"I am convinced Raito has a beautiful body that matches his beautiful face."

"You've seen my face?"

"I have photos."

"Where did you get them?" Raito demanded. "No, don't tell me. I am a police officer, you know."

"And that is why I am not going to tell you, Raito," Ryuuzaki said, his tone amused.

"It seems a little unfair," Raito said. "That you know what I look like but I have no idea about your appearance."

"You have an idea – "

"It's very vague." Raito said.

"Perhaps not so much."

"What do you mean?" Raito said. _What does he mean? Have I seen him somewhere? Is he somebody famous? Who the hell could he be? I hope to God he's not one of my damn suspects!_

"I will tell you, Raito," Ryuuzaki said. "Give me some time. I'm having a little difficulty with this."

"This?"

"This – communication between you and I. It's quite unfamiliar to me. I'm still adjusting."

"Haven't you had a lot of relationships, Ryuuzaki?"

"Not many relationships of any kind, Raito." Ryuuzaki said. "How about you?"

"Nothing important," Raito said, mind racing. _Who the hell is he? He's giving me clues – does he want me to guess? I don't want to invade his privacy – no, fuck, I do! Maybe – surely he's not... Ha! I know how I can find that out!_

"Samishii desu ka, Ryuuzaki?" he asked. _(are you lonely?)_

"Lonely?" Ryuuzaki said, also switching to Japanese. "Perhaps. It hadn't really occurred to me before. Alone, yes."

"But you like me?"

"Raito-kun is a very likeable person."

"I'm not very easy to get along with," Raito confessed.

"Raito-kun has a long way to go to catch up with me," Ryuuzaki said.

"No, I seem a lot nicer than I really am," Raito said.

"I find it slightly ridiculous that we are discussing which of us is the most difficult," Ryuuzaki said.

Raito laughed. "Tell me, this, uh, domination ambition of yours, does it involve bondage of any kind?"

"It didn't," Ryuuzaki said. "But if Raito-kun wishes – "

"No!" Raito said. "I just wondered if that's what you meant."

"My ideas were considerably more vanilla than that," Ryuuzaki said.

"So you were thinking – penetration?" Raito settled himself more comfortably on the bed, letting the hand that wasn't holding the phone stray south.

"It has featured quite frequently in my fantasies about Raito-kun." Ryuuzaki said. "Amongst other things."

"Hm?"

"I have an oral fixation," Ryuuzaki said. "So the idea of using my mouth on Raito-kun has been an appealing idea."

"I find that idea appealing myself," Raito said, fingertips straying over the length of his hardening member.

"I imagine myself licking the whole of Raito's body until he is driven to distraction," Ryuuzaki said.

"Like ice cream?" Raito laughed.

"I want to make you melt, Raito," Ryuuzaki said. "I want to make you sweat and moan and scream."

"Nhnn! Ryuuzaki – " Raito's hand clenched around his now fully rampant erection.

"My tongue wants to explore every part of you," Ryuuzaki went on. "Your beautiful soft lips – "

"Mm, kisses – " Raito murmured, imagining them. "Yes..."

"Your elegant neck, which begs me to suck and bite it – "

"Hahhh..." Raito's hand was moving, stroking himself, thinking of having Ryuuzaki in his bed, working his mouth magic on Raito's willing body.

"I want to torture your nipples with my tongue until you beg for mercy."

"Nnh, I don't beg..."

"You will. Especially when I start to nip them with my teeth – "

"I might beg a little bit."

"Raito-kun will be pleading with me to stop and not meaning a word of it."

"No, no, Ryuuzaki, I don't want you to stop anything. I want to touch you. Stroke you while you taste me and lick me. I want you to look at me, hot and sweaty on my bed while you pleasure me."

"Looking at Raito-kun is one of the most pleasurable things I can imagine doing," Ryuuzaki said, fervently. "Especially if he is all aroused and horny and asking to be made more so."

"I'm aroused and horny now, Ryuuzaki," Raito assured the other man.

"Touching yourself?"

"Yes," Raito said. "Thinking about you."

"I could do that for you," Ryuuzaki said.

"You could do that for me with your mouth," Raito said.

"Mhnn! Yes, Raito's cock in my mouth, demanding me to suck it!"

"I would insist," Raito said. "Hold you by your hair and fuck your beautiful face."

"My face would be only too happy to oblige, Raito," Ryuuzaki said. "And I could do things to you with my tongue that would make you come so hard you'd never return to Earth."

"Oh, fuck, yes!" Raito writhed on the bed, hand pumping himself. Swirled his fingers through the precum dripping from the head of his dick, smearing it down his shaft.

"Licking you like a lollipop," Ryuuzaki elaborated. "Up and down your beautiful cock, blowing on it to make you shudder. Tongue-bathing your glans, making it swell and dribble, drinking your precum – "

"Ohhhhh!" Raito moaned loudly, clasping the phone to his ear passionately, stroking his fisted hand up and down his length, squeezing the sensitive head of his overheated cock. "Yes, Ryuuzaki, suck me, I want to come in your mouth!"

"Teasing the little open slit, tickling my tongue into it, running it around the edge then plunging inside..."

"Fuck! Fuck! Yes!"

"Then sliding your whole length into my mouth, pulling you over on top of me – I want to swallow you – "

"Ahnnn! Ryuuzaki, I'm – "

"Your cock in my throat, deep and hard, clenched tightly," Ryuuzaki gasped, "Swallowing your cum as it shoots out of you – uhhn, Raito!"

"Cumming –" Raito moaned, bucking his hips upward as he shuddered into ecstatic climax, his seed bursting out of his jerking cock, spurting over his sweat-slicked body, crying out as waves of overwhelming pleasure made him spasm and writhe on the bed.

"Ah, Ryuuzaki..."

"Raito."

"You're so sweet."

"Not the usual description I hear of myself."

"Such an incredible thing to do for me – "

"Raito deserves incredible things. Besides, I did it for myself as well. Thinking about Raito always gets me off, especially when he is personally involved."

"Mhm... tell me something?"

"Raito is perfection incarnate." Ryuuzaki murmured. "And has a wonderful imagination."

"Thank you. But I was thinking of something more specific."

"Hm?"

"That was you, wasn't it? That I ran into outside the hotel?"

"Why would Raito think that?"

"Your voice. It's quite distinctive. I wasn't sure until I got you speaking Japanese for a while. But now I am."

"I should not have spoken to you." Ryuuzaki said. "It was a mistake."

"Why didn't you say who you were?"

"Raito was working," Ryuuzaki said. "And he was pursued by the press. I did not want to be a distraction to him."

"But now we've more or less met, Ryuuzaki," Raito leaned up on his elbow excitedly, "We can do it again, can't we?"

"Perhaps."

"What? Don't you want to?"

"Is Raito suggesting that we take our fantasies into the realms of reality?"

"Why not?"

"Did Raito not enjoy what we just did?"

"Yes, of course I did, couldn't you tell?" Raito said. "I enjoyed it more than I normally enjoy actual sex with other people. But are you saying you just want to do this? On the phone? With the messenger? Is that all you want?"

"What else exactly is Raito thinking we could have?" Ryuuzaki asked. "Is he simply wishing to have sex in a more direct manner?"

"I want to meet you," Raito said. "Talk to you. In person. I – I, uh, I want to look at you again. I liked it the first time and I want to do it some more."

"Perhaps we would be disappointed," Ryuuzaki said. "After all, we do not know each other very well."

"No, I don't think so," Raito said. "Unless – do you think you wouldn't like me if you knew me better?"

"Actually, my impression is that the better I knew Raito, the more I would like him."

"Then what's the problem?"

"Perhaps Raito would not like me so much if he got to know me."

"I can't imagine that happening," Raito said. "But if you're scared – "

"Raito should not attempt to play me," Ryuuzaki grumbled. "Especially not in such an obvious way."

"I'll let you fuck me," Raito said.

"As soon as Raito moves back into his own apartment," Ryuuzaki said, "I will be there."


	6. Chapter 6

_The morning after... XD_

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I own some new underwear, but mine is red. XD_

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"Yagami-kun!"

"Hmh?" Raito muttered.

"It's time to wake up," the insistent voice told him.

"Hrmph," Raito responded.

"Yagami-kun, you need to get out of bed before the other detectives get here."

"Just a minute."

"No, no minutes. Do you want them to see you naked, in your bed? Especially considering the fact that your sheets are sticky and probably smell of sex."

"What!" Raito sat up and stared in alarm at the laptop. "Oh, shit!"

"Yagami-kun needs to get up right now, put his sheets in the laundry and take a shower," L went on.

"Yes, I do, you're right," Raito said, leaping out of bed.

"You will find useful items on the bedside table."

"Huh?" Raito examined the table. "Shower gel? Underwear? You bought me underwear? And why so many pairs? How long do you think I'm staying here?"

"I merely imagined that Raito would appreciate a choice of color. I prefer the black myself."

"Um. Thank you. How did all this stuff get here?"

"Watari brought it," L said. "But Yagami-kun may be assured that he is very discreet."

Raito pulled the sheets off the bed, grabbed his clothes and headed for the shower before something struck him.

"Did you get some sleep last night, L?"

"I told Yagami-kun that I would be working, did I not?"

"But – you were, I mean your laptop was turned off."

"I had a minor technical glitch, Yagami-kun. For a few moments only."

"..."

"I am also very discreet," L said. "And Yagami-kun is amazingly entertaining when in the throes of passion."

"..."

"I thoroughly enjoyed myself," L added.

"..."

"Yagami-kun should take his shower now, and wash away the evidence of his night of lustful abandon."

Raito wanted to say something. He really did. But nothing he could think of seemed to do justice to his feelings. He settled for huffing, flipping his hair and stalking out of the room, sure he could hear a robotic snigger from the laptop as he left. Had showered and was drying himself before he realised he'd automatically picked up the black underwear. _Wonderful! I'm submissive and I'm obedient. Did I wake up yesterday as somebody else? Did the Bodysnatchers land and turn me into a Stepford Wife? And is strawberry shower gel L's idea of a joke? Raito smells like a fruit..._

"Yagami-kun will find breakfast on the table," L said as Raito came back into the room.

"Thank you, L," Raito said, taking a seat near the laptop and pouring himself some coffee. Smiled as he thought about the events of last night. Stopped smiling as he remembered all of them.

"Is something troubling Yagami-kun?" L enquired.

"Nothing about the case, L."

"If Yagami-kun is distracted by thoughts of other matters, perhaps he would like to discuss them?" L said. "I do not wish his efficiency to be impaired by disturbing considerations of his personal life."

"How much did you hear of last night's – events?" Raito asked. _It can't hurt to talk to him, can it? I mean – it's not as if he's actually here. And it seems as if he doesn't give a damn what I do..._

"All of it," L said.

"You heard me talking to him, uh, afterwards?"

"Yes, I heard that."

"And – what I offered to do with him?"

"My laptop has excellent sound capturing abilities, Yagami-kun. I am sure I did not miss a thing."

"What was I thinking!" Raito exclaimed. "Honestly, L, I think I got carried away in the moment or something!"

"Yagami-kun has changed his mind about making himself available in such a way."

"I don't know!" Raito said. "Normally I know what I'm doing!"

"Even a genius of Yagami-kun's calibre cannot possibly know everything," L commented. "Perhaps he does not have sufficient experience with this kind of thing."

"I don't have _any_ experience with this kind of thing, per se," Raito said. "I've never had a gay relationship before. I feel – um..."

"What does Yagami-kun feel?"

Raito lowered his voice. "I feel as if I'm doing it – wrong," he hissed.

"That must be unprecedented for you," L said.

"Don't be sarcastic!"

"I wouldn't dream of it, Yagami-kun. But surely there is no right or wrong way to further the course of an intimate relationship? I am not experienced in these matters myself, but I would have thought its progress would depend very much on the needs and desires of the individuals involved."

"If they happen to know what their needs and desires are," Raito said, gloomily.

"Is Yagami-kun not sure what he wants from this relationship?"

"I know some things I want," Raito said. "It's just – the physical side of it. Why did I offer to do such a thing with no conditions attached? What if I don't like it? What if it – hurts? What if he doesn't care that it hurts? What if he thinks it means I want to be bottom all the time? What if he has no respect for me afterwards and now I see my feminine side is so clearly on view I might as well start wearing a dress and change my name to Aiko."

"I do not think Yagami-kun is inexperienced enough or foolish enough to choose somebody who is so insensitive that they would not respect his wishes as to what he wants to do in the bedroom. Or so uncaring of his welfare that they would not make an effort to ensure that he likes what he does."

"Well – yes – "

"I think he is merely nervous about experiencing the unknown." L continued. "Perhaps he should take some time to traverse the internet and familiarise himself with the possibilities."

"You're suggesting I look at porn sites?" Raito raised an eyebrow at the laptop.

"Porn sites offer a wealth of pictorial information," L said. "Although some of the things they show are clearly anatomically impossible and the product of disordered minds and Photoshop. But there are more serious sites as well that cater for people who wish to simply learn more about the mechanics of sex in order to augment their experience or develop new skills."

"Gay Sex 101?" Rait said.

"Something like that," L said. "I will provide Yagami-kun with some links. Now we should return to work."

"Yes," Raito said, pushing away the breakfast tray. "Thank you, L. I don't know any other gay person that I can talk to about this."

"But Yagami-kun, there is a whole floor full of gay people right here who would be delighted to offer you both theoretical knowledge and practical experience."

Raito turned as the door opened, his father coming through and looking rather surprised to see his son and a laptop sitting laughing together at the table.

"We still haven't found the last suspect," Soichiro said as Matsuda and Aizawa came in behind him.

"What!" Raito exclaimed. "I didn't even know he was lost! Why didn't anyone tell me?"

"You needed to sleep, Raito," Soichiro said. "We've been looking for him everywhere. His secretary says he often disappears when he's thinking over some ideas."

"He's a game designer," Matsuda supplied.

"I'll go and look for him," Raito got up.

"We already did," Aizawa said.

"Then I'll look again," Raito said. "There's no point having a meeting about the case when we don't even know if one of our suspects has an alibi or not. Or is maybe another victim."

"I agree with Yagami-kun," L said, unexpectedly. "Finding Velasquez should be our highest priority. If he is also dead, it could potentially give us a lot more information about the killer."

"That's a cold-blooded way of looking at it!" Aizawa said.

"It's called making the best of the situation, Aizawa-san," L said.

"Yes, but, this is a human life we're talking about here!" Aizawa protested.

"I am not prone to bewailing what cannot be helped," L said. "If he is dead there is nothing to be done about it."

"The best we can do is to make sure he didn't die for nothing, Aizawa-san," Raito said. "By learning more about the murderer and catching him before he continues his killing."

Aizawa gave both genii a black look but said no more.

"I'll let you know if I find him, L," Raito said as he left the room, his father following.

"I'm going to check his room first," Raito said. "Perhaps there's some indication as to where he went."

"We didn't find anything, Raito," Soichiro said. "But perhaps you will. By the way, whatever you've done to make L more amenable, it seems to be working remarkably well. He actually asked me my opinion on several things last night and he's never done that before."

"He just needs to be aware that he can't walk all over people," Raito said_. And given a live sex show, that puts him in the best mood ever, but I don't think otousan needs to hear that._

"You seem to be getting along very well," Soichiro remarked.

"He's interesting," Raito said. "He seems quite friendly, actually. I think he likes the company."

"He's never liked it much before," Soichiro mused. "I suppose you two have a lot in common though. Your intellect and interest in all kinds of things."

"Yes, we do seem to have similar interests," Raito agreed as his father opened the door of the missing suspect's room. _Please don't ask me what those interests are, otousan._

He took a good look around the room, seeing nothing particularly unusual. A bed, a large expensive looking wooden wardrobe, various chairs, cases with packing strewing out of them scattered around, and over by the window a long table which contained an array of games consoles. But that was to be expected from a game designer no doubt. There was a pile of papers on the bedside table and Raito went to sort through them, hoping for some indication as to the occupant's whereabouts.

"Where's the secretary now?" Raito asked.

"He has a room on the next floor down," Soichiro said. "He didn't seem particularly concerned that his employer's missing, so I presume that it really is normal for him to disappear."

"You'd think he'd realise that we might want to question him," Raito said.

"Yes," Soichiro said absently. Raito turned to look at him.

"Something wrong, otousan?"

"Not wrong, exactly, Raito," Soichiro said. "It's just – there's something I've been meaning to ask you about. A personal matter."

"Why would you have any problem asking me something personal?" Raito said, going over to the bathroom. Nothing in there apart from toiletries and a strong smell of peroxide.

"I don't want you to think I'm criticising you," Soichiro said.

"Is it because I was asleep last night?" Raito said, guiltily.

"No, of course not, Raito, all the detectives have been catching sleep here and there."

"So what is it, otousan?" Raito said. "You know I won't mind, whatever you ask me."

" I was wondering, Raito," Soichiro cleared his throat. "Are you – "

There was a huge crash from the wardrobe.

"What the – " Raito spun around.

A loud, hollow groan came from somewhere inside the wardrobe, followed by a scuffling sound.

Soichiro hurried across the room to the huge piece of furniture and pulled on the doors, revealing the curled body of a man who groaned again and rolled out onto the floor, clutching at his head.

"I think we may have found our missing member of the party," Soichiro said, kneeling beside the man.

"God fucking damnit!" the young man exclaimed, looking up at the two of them rather blearily.

"Ramon Velasquez?" Raito asked, taking in the man's olive skin, dark Latin eyes and rather improbable strawberry-blond hair. Which probably explained the peroxide smell.

"Who are you?" the young man struggled to sit up, finally managed it and glared around him.

"Police," Raito said. "We're here about the murders."

"Murders? What murders?"

"..."

"Four members of your group were murdered yesterday," Soichiro said. "Didn't you know about it?"

"No, why would I?"

"There was quite a commotion," Raito said.

"I didn't hear anything," Velasquez said. "I've been hanging upside-down in the closet since I got here."

He stared up at Raito and a smile slowly spread across his face, lightening it considerably.

"You're a cop?" he said. "Does it mean you're getting older when the policemen look prettier?"

"Not again," Raito said, wearily. "Please, Mr Velasquez, what do you mean, you were hanging upside-down in your closet?"

"From the clothes rail," Velasquez said. "Hanging. Upside-down. Don't you speak English too well?"

"I understand you perfectly," Raito said. "I'm just not quite sure why you would want to do such a thing."

"I'm writing a game about vampires," Velasquez said. "So I've gotta find out what it's like to be a bat. But the damn clothes rail wasn't strong enough to support the weight of a big bat like me for any longer. It collapsed."

"You hung upside-down in your closet," Soichiro said, carefully, "So you could pretend to be a vampire bat?"

"Isn't that what I've been saying?" Velasquez grinned. "If I'd'a been in my coffin, I'd probably have had more chance of hearing what was going on."

"You have a coffin?" Raito said.

"Yeah, it's in my secretary's room. Takes up too much space to have in here."

"So you know absolutely nothing about the events that have happened since you arrived," Soichiro said, sceptically.

"Hey, I know it sounds a little off the wall, but, you know, I got carried away. Wanted to see how long I could stay up there. It was kinda like a challenge."

"We're going to need to talk to you again later," Raito said. "If you decide to disappear into any more odd hiding places, please can you let us know first?"

"No problem," Velasquez, now apparently recovered from his fall, showed them out. Raito could feel eyes tracking his ass all the way down the corridor.

"You're very popular with the, uh, same gender, Raito," Soichiro remarked.

"They probably just don't get out much," Raito said.

"That, uh, reminds me – "

"Oh, there you are!" Matsuda popped out of the headquarters room, also known as Raito's bedroom. "Do you want some coffee?"

"Please," Soichiro shrugged and he and Raito followed Matsuda into the room, Aizawa and Mogi already seated at the table.

"Good, Yagami-kun has returned," L said. "And Chief Yagami, of course. Did you find the errant suspect?"

"You don't want to know, L," Raito said. "Yes, we found him, no, he's not dead."

"I suppose that's a good thing," L said. "What is it I don't want to know?"

"He was hanging in his wardrobe, pretending to be a vampire bat. Swears he didn't even hear about the murders."

"I don't suppose a bat cares much about what humans do," L said.

"I don't know who are crazier," Aizawa muttered. "The suspects or the investigators."

"Perhaps Matsuda would care to tell us about his tools?" L said.

"He has more than one?" Mogi commented. "No wonder he's so popular with the ladies."

Matsuda laughed. "Not my personal tool, Mogi. Which is a childish name for what is actually a penis. The tools that the murderer used to cut up the victims' skulls. I've been visiting surgical tool suppliers, looking for anyone that's bought saws or clamps or retractors or scalpels."

"Did you find anything?" Raito asked.

"One person bought some of those things," Matsuda said. "Yesterday, as well."

"Get a name and a description?" Soichiro asked.

"I've already checked it out," Matsuda said. "The name was false, address the same and the description – a young Japanese man with black hair."

"Duhamel has two of those working for him," Raito said, just as there was a knock at the door. Aizawa, who was nearest, went to open it.

"Is Yagami-san there?" Duhamel's voice. "The young, attractive one."

"I wonder if he's come to confess!" Matsuda said excitedly.

Raito got up and went over to the door.

"Can I help you, Mr Duhamel?"

"I wondered if you'd like to have breakfast with me, Yagami-san?" Duhamel said, now reasonably clean and having combed his hair.

"I've already had breakfast, thank you." Raito said. _Can this guy really be a murderer? He seems too – harmless._

"Would you care to have lunch with me then?"

"I'm a little busy with the case at the moment," Raito smiled at the frustrated man who burst out in a bright blush and started fidgeting.

"Well, in that case, excuse me being blunt, but how would you like to have, erm – "

"I already have somebody for that, Mr Duhamel."

"Oh, damn!" Duhamel said. "Well, I suppose it was to be expected..."

"Thank you for the offer, however," Raito said, closing the door firmly on the rejected author.

"You _do_ have a girlfriend, Yagami-kun!" Matsuda said as Raito sat down again.

"No, Matsuda-san," Raito said, out of patience. "I do _not_ have a girlfriend."

"Well, if you have somebody, and you don't have a girlfriend – "

Raito stared across the table as Matsuda put two and two together.

"Oh!" he finally said. "Yagami-kun – "

Soichiro turned to his son.

"I've been meaning to ask you about that, Raito..."


	7. Chapter 7

_This continues straight on from the last chapter :)_

_I'm aware the songs that get sung have appeared in the fics of Hari-Aisu and MysteriousPenname before – because they both have the knack of picking the perfect songs to enhance this eccentric pairing experience XD So thanks to Ricky Martin and Nat King Cole for writing a bunch of potentially perverse lyrics XD_

_SPOILERS: AU, no spoilers apart from possibly L's real name, I don't know yet._

_DISCLAIMER: I don't own Death Note or its characters. I have some pretty weird characters of my own though! XD_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

Raito smiled at his father.

"And now you don't need to ask, otousan," he said.

"To move on from Yagami-kun's obvious flamingness," L droned. "Matsuda-san, you have the surveillance tape from the tool suppliers?"

"It won't do you any good," Matsuda said sadly. "Really, Yagami-kun? You're – "

"Matsuda!" L broke in.

"Uh, yes, sorry, L-san... well the person who bought them was wearing a motorbike helmet and goggles."

"Who wears goggles any more on a motorbike?" Raito wondered.

"I don't." L said. "I have a visor on my helmet."

"You have a motorbike, L?" Raito asked.

"I have more than one, Raito-kun," L said. "My pride and joy is a 1976 Ducati 900, which I'm scared to ride in case I break it."

Soichiro coughed meaningfully.

"Sorry, otousan," Raito said. "If he had a visor on his helmet, it'd be normal for him to lift it up and show his face to talk to the people at the shop. So – goggles."

"You can keep on wearing those," L agreed, "and people are more likely to think of you as strangely retro than suspicious."

"If he was wearing a helmet, how did they know he had black hair?" Raito asked Matsuda.

"I asked that!" Matsuda said. "they could see the front of it poking out, the bangs, you know. I also got the book that he signed so we could dust it for prints but you know how many people might have touched that."

"The fact that he went to such lengths to cover his face suggests that he's the person we want," Raito said. "But we have no Japanese suspects amongst the main group."

"It can't be Duhamel," Mogi said. "His alibi checks out, he was on the flight he says he was on and it was delayed."

"Did you check his two, uh – " Raito paused, not sure what to call Duhamel's two boys.

"Love slaves?" L offered. "Boy toys? Bitches?"

"Yes, those," Raito said before the laptop could come up with any more suggestions. "They're Japanese."

"But the three of them traveled together," Mogi said. "So they couldn't have been involved in it either."

"To move onto the forensic evidence," L said. "The victims were rendered comatose by a mixture of benzodiazepines including flunitrazepam."

"Rohypnol?" Raito said, then looked up as the door opened.

"Rohypnol?" Lavelle walked in without asking. "The date rape drug? Is that what they were given?" Raito noticed with surprise that he was now speaking perfect Japanese.

"Amongst other things," L said. "Mostly temazepam."

"That's quite easily available on the street," Lavelle said.

"Which tends to divert suspicion from the only person left alive with a medical degree," Raito commented.

"I have an alibi," Lavelle said.

"Yes, he does." Mogi said. "I checked it out myself. There's no way he could have had time to kill everyone and do all that typing."

"Can we help you, Aymery?" L said.

"I just wanted to see how you were getting on," Lavelle said. "I'm impatient."

"Then go talk to your friends," L recommended. "Find me something. Velasquez states he was hanging upside-down in a closet for the duration of the murders and all night after that, is that even possible?"

"I wouldn't think so," Lavelle said. "He'd be quite likely to pass out eventually."

"So find out what he was really doing." L said.

"Yes, boss," Lavelle winked at Raito and went out of the room again.

"You do know he's a suspect, L-san?" Aizawa said.

"I'm aware of that, Aizawa-san."

"So is it correct for him to be actually helping to investigate the case?"

"I'm perfectly satisfied with him doing that," L said.

"But – " Aizawa began.

"Somebody needs to check out Juste Fisher's alibi," L interrupted. "Take a photo of him around the gay area and see if we can find anyone that actually partnered him in his sex marathon."

"What!" Raito said as everyone's eyes turned toward him.

"You're more likely to get a sympathetic response from the people you'll be questioning, Raito," Soichiro said.

"Fruit off the same tree, Yagami-kun," Mogi said.

"I don't think anyone would imagine I'm gay just by looking at me," Raito protested.

"Unfortunate as it is to shake the foundations of Yagami-kun's self delusion," L said, "I also think he would be the best person for the job."

"I'll go ask him for a photo," Mogi said.

"Take the camera," Raito told him. "Do it yourself, I don't want some snapshot of him that even his mother wouldn't recognize."

"Rohypnol," L said.

"It suggests that the killer was preparing for the possibilty that he'd be interrupted," Raito said.

"He wanted the victims to be confused and disoriented if they should ever wake up," L agreed.

"So they wouldn't remember what happened to them or who was there," Raito said.

"We are certainly dealing with an organised and intelligent mind here," L said. "I wonder what he did with the murder weapons?"

"No sign of them anywhere," Aizawa said, glumly. "But he had plenty of time to get rid of them before that phone call was put through to the TV station."

"Have we a recording of that yet?" L asked.

"It's on its way," Soichiro said. "But they said it was – altered. Like your own voice, L."

"This killer thinks of everything!" Matsuda said, half-admiringly.

"Let's hope that's not the case, Matsuda-san," L said.

Silence fell over the room as everyone shuffled through everyone else's paperwork. Mogi came back and printed off a photo of Fisher that he handed to Raito.

"Thanks," Raito said, deciding there was no way out of his position as elected gay representative. He became aware that the laptop was quietly singing to itself.

"She bangs, she bangs... ooh, baby, when she moves, she moves..."

"What happens if I hit the escape key?" Raito asked.

"I escape, Raito-kun," L said. "I flee my laptop prison and materialize before you clad in a cape and spandex."

"With a big L on the front of your costume?"

"You read my mind," L agreed. Started to sing again.

"L is for the way you look at me..."

"I don't want either of those stuck in my head all day!" Raito said.

"Too late, too late, the maiden cried!"

"Baka!" Raito laughed.

"Raito-kun is so cruel," L said. "He is breaking my heart."

"While I have no objection to your sexual orientation, Raito, if it makes you happy," Soichiro said. "I really think you should give me time to adjust before you start flirting in front of me."

"I'm not flirting, otousan!" Raito said. "He is!"

"Raito-kun is just so irresistible," L said.

"I thought you liked Ricky Martin, Yagami-kun?" Matsuda said.

"That should've told you he was gay from the get-go," Mogi commented.

"You actually like Ricky Martin, Raito-kun?" L said.

"Hmph," Raito said, suddenly becoming very absorbed in what he was reading.

There was another knock on the door.

"Can't they leave us alone?" Aizawa said as he got up to answer it.

"I want the detective." Velasquez' voice. "Not you, the pretty one."

"That would be you, Yagami-kun," Mogi said.

Raito glared at him and went to the door to find his suspect standing there with a bunch of roses in his hand.

"Mr Velasquez?" he said.

"How you doing?" the young man said. "I brought flowers. So can we fuck?"

"No!" Raito said, slamming the door shut. He put his back to it and leaned against it.

"I am tempted to revise my plan of sending Yagami-kun alone into the gay village," L said. "It occurs to me that perhaps he may never return."

"I'm perfectly capable of fending off any advances that might be directed at me, L!" Raito said, returning to his seat.

"You could take somebody with you," Matsuda said.

Raito looked round the table, overwhelmed with the throng of colleagues not volunteering.

"Take your boyfriend," L recommended.

"What?" Soichiro stared at the laptop in amazement. "But L – I thought you were Raito's – um, friend."

"What!" Raito turned to his father. "But – otousan, L and I? How could that happen? And why would you think it has?"

"He asked me about your underwear, Raito," Soichiro said.

"I was merely seeking to make Yagami-kun more comfortable, Yagami-san," L droned. "Someone as obsessive as he is would be quite distressed to wear the same underwear two days in a row."

"I'm not obsessive!" Raito said.

"What if I broke into your house, Raito-kun," L said, "and changed all your socks into odd pairs?"

"I'd – well I'd – I'd just put them back the right way, L," Raito said. _What a disturbing thing to suggest!_

"Then let us suppose," L said, "that I perform this heinous action during the night and you do not discover it until you are dressing next morning. If you rearrange the socks now, there is a chance that you will be late for work. Can you go to work and leave your sock drawer in that disordered state all day?"

"Um... " Raito said. "Okay, maybe I'm a bit obsessive."

"Not a bad trait for a police officer," L said.

"Who is this boyfriend you apparently have, Raito?" Soichiro broke in.

"Just a man," Raito said. "That I know."

"How long were you going to hide him from your mother and myself?" Soichiro demanded.

"I wasn't hiding him, otousan!" Raito protested. "I just haven't known him for very long, that's all."

"You should bring him home for dinner," Soichiro said.

"Um, yes, I'll ask him," Raito agreed. _Fuck! I haven't even met him myself yet! That's not going to work, I want to meet you, let's go to my parents' house... he'll think I'm very odd if I suggest that._

"Let us progress," L said. "Matsuda, have that book fingerprinted that your Japanese man touched. And Yagami-kun, I will discuss the details of your expedition with you privately."

"You didn't have to tell my father I have a boyfriend!" Raito said, when everyone had left.

"You would rather he went on thinking it was me?"

"I didn't know he did think it was you, L!" Raito said. "I mean – how could he? You don't meet people or anything, so it's not exactly feasible."

"Perhaps he thought Raito-kun's incomparable beauty had lured me out of seclusion," L said.

"I doubt it," Raito said. "You might be right, you know, about me taking my, um, my – "

"Boyfriend." L supplied.

" – with me. He is a detective, so he's not going to do anything stupid. And I'd look less conspicuous."

"Besides not being molested and groped half so much," L said. "Although it's early, so there won't be too many people about."

"Best time to catch the staff when they're not busy," Raito said, getting out his phone and finding Ryuuzaki's number.

"Excuse me, Raito-kun, I need to call Mogi and ask him where he put the flight details for the suspects," L said.

"Okay," Raito replied absently, speed-dialling the number. It rang a few times and Raito had time to wonder if perhaps the man was still in bed.

"Are you still in bed?" the voice answered.

"No!" Raito said with a smile. "I've been up for hours. I wondered if you'd like to help me with something – "

"Morning wood?"

"I don't have time for that," Raito said. "It's to do with the case I'm working on. I wondered if you'd like to come help me check out an alibi? If you're not too busy?"

"I will drop everything for Raito," Ryuuzaki replied. "Work, personal commitments, pants – "

"We need to go to Shinjuku," Raito interrupted, smiling. "Can you meet me there in an hour?"

"Do you know Air Blan Service?" Ryuuzaki said. "Near the station – we can have lunch."

"I'll see you there," Raito said.


	8. Chapter 8

_Kushiyaki – kind of like kebabs. Food on skewers. _

_Now I can't get Ricky Martin out of this story. Oh well, he should feel at home here XD_

_SPOILERS: AU, no spoilers apart from possibly L's real name, I don't know yet._

_DISCLAIMER: I don't own Death Note or its characters. I own about twenty shirts and they all need ironing. I need a houseboy. Or a Watari. Or something. XD_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

Raito left the station at Shinjuku, looking about him. No Ryuuzaki in view. He went in the direction of the cafe, checking his hair in a shop window as he passed, feeling more than a little nervous. Considering how strange the situation was. Absently singing to himself.

"If it looks like love should be a crime, you'd better lock me up for life... I'll do the time with a smile on my face – "

"Raito-kun is very tuneful today," a voice said behind him.

Raito turned and found Ryuuzaki, an amused expression on his face.

"You like your men in leather and lace?" the rather shabby detective asked.

Raito laughed. "No – I was just thinking, Ryuuzaki, how much technology has changed people's lives."

"Hm?" they walked on together toward the cafe.

"You and I for instance," Raito said. "We've had sexual experiences together – but this is the first time we've ever spoken in person."

"I suppose it is odd," Ryuuzaki said. "Although there have been instances in the past of people who have conducted their affaires through the written word."

"Love letters," Raito said, as they went into the cafe and found a table. "They're not so common now."

"Everything is more rapid, Raito," Ryuuzaki agreed. "It used to be a staple device of the mystery story that the detective would find love letters from one of his suspects and deduce something from it. But now it's not so believable."

"Some people still write them," Raito said.

"The more romantic amongst us probably enjoy having a keepsake from our beloved," Ryuuzaki said. "I think photos are more common now."

Raito examined the other man as they paused to order food, taking in the bad posture, lack of hairstyle, peculiar sitting position and clothes that were somewhere on the far side of grunge. Dismissed all of that. _He's beautiful! I have a beautiful man having lunch with me! A beautiful, reputedly well-hung man having lunch with me! And his voice is even sexier than it is on the phone! Who cares what he wears, I'm only going to take them off anyway!_

"That waiter was checking you out," Ryuuzaki said when the man had gone.

"Was he? I didn't notice."

"Good. How is your case going?"

Raito laughed. "You know I shouldn't talk to you about that."

"I know," Ryuuzaki's eyes widened into something frighteningly cute. "So how is it going?"

"Four people who had the opportunity, but two have alibis – there are also some hangers-on, secretary, houseboys. We're going to check out one of the suspect's story that he was having sex all afternoon."

"Sex," Ryuuzaki said dreamily, staring into Raito's eyes. "All afternoon."

"With four different men," Raito added.

"My fantasy destroyed," Ryuuzaki said with a pout that charmed Raito so much he leaned across the table and kissed the man without even thinking of it. Just a brush of his lips but enough to register their smooth firmness, his sweet taste.

Ryuuzaki smiled, a wide, pointed smile that gave him the appearance of a slightly crazed and extremely intelligent pixie.

Raito smiled back, unable not to, and leaned toward him again.

"Get a room!" the waiter said as he put down their plates.

Raito laughed and reached for his chopsticks. Then noticed what Ryuuzaki's lunch consisted of. "I know you said you like cake... but don't you eat anything else?"

"Sometimes," Ryuuzaki said, picking up a fork. "I need a high calorific intake to fuel my mental processes."

"Best excuse I ever heard," Raito commented. "What about your teeth?"

"I care for them obsessively," Ryuuzaki said. "About us getting a room?"

"Hm?"

"Raito has a room. At his hotel."

"Oh." Raito said, eyes widening at the amount of sugar Ryuuzaki was adding to his tea. "I'm actually sharing that with someone." _A laptop. But a very inquisitive one._

"Can't you get rid of him for a while?"

"I wish. But he's fixed in place."

"Pardon?"

"Dedicated to his work. Immobile."

"Doesn't he go to the bathroom or anything?"

"Not that I've noticed," Raito said. "Besides, the time it takes someone to go to the bathroom? That has to be the quickest quickie in the history of the world!"

"Good point," Ryuuzaki said. "I would rather go more slowly than that for the first time. I was thinking more along the lines of – several weeks."

Raito laughed. "I'll never walk again."

"I see Raito is resigned to accepting his uke position?" Ryuuzaki leaned forward, staring intently at the younger man.

"Uh, not all the time," Raito suddenly found his plate of kushiyaki fascinating.

"Look at me, Raito," Ryuuzaki murmured.

Raito raised his head, feeling his face heat up under Ryuuzaki's compelling gaze_. I can't say no to him if this is what he wants. I should just tell him I'd do anything – _

"I will do anything Raito wishes," Ryuuzaki said, earnestly. "So he does not have to feel that he needs to present himself to me in any way that makes him uncomfortable."

"I'm not uncomfortable, Ryuuzaki," Raito said. "I just don't want you to think of me as some kind of stereotype, that's all."

Ryuuzaki reached out, stroked his slim fingers down Raito's cheek. "I would never do that, Raito. I want you to feel you can be yourself with me, whatever that is. I would like to feel the same."

"But you don't?" Raito interpreted.

"I want to," Ryuuzaki sighed, then gave Raito a mischievous look. "I have to confess, though, I have an incredibly intense desire to fuck you."

Raito laughed. "I'm quite looking forward to it, I suppose."

"You are?"

"Yes, I think so."

"We should do everything," Ryuuzaki declared. "So, you have your opportunity, and I presume you have the means?"

"We know what he did it with, although we haven't actually found it. Them." Raito said, following the subject change effortlessly. "Surgical tools – which seem to have been bought here in Tokyo."

"So what is your motive?" Ryuuzaki wondered.

"I'm not sure," Raito said. "You know the details – I mean they were reported on the news – "

"Yes, unfortunately," Ryuuzaki said. "What does it suggest?"

"They're all gay," Raito mused. "And their genitals were placed inside their empty heads."

"That's one way of looking at it," Ryuuzaki said. "A hate crime."

"But since the suspects are all gay as well – "

"Or perhaps pretending to be," Ryuuzaki suggested.

"I got the impression they'd all known each other for a while," Raito said. "But maybe I should check that more closely. See if any of them are relatively new to the group."

"Is Raito familiar with the term dickhead?"

"Well, yes..." Raito thought about that. "You think it could just be a childish insult?"

"It's a lot of effort to make just to embody some playground humor."

"But if that's the meaning, it does suggest that the person responsible is particularly immature."

"Your suspects – in fact the whole group, are or were people of extremely high intelligence, were they not?"

"Yes," Raito said. "People like that are often childish. Or playful at any rate."

"There's always the possibility that one or other of them was the target – "

"And the others and in fact, the method of killing are just a smoke screen for a murder commited for a particular reason." Raito said.

"Which brings us to love or money," Ryuuzaki mused, taking a sip of his sugary sludge. "I am aware of the names and some details of the victims and suspects – but not their involvement with each other..."

"The only ones I know who were having a relationship were Lavelle and Shimbabukuro." Raito said. "And none of the details we have about any of them suggest any financial involvement with each other. The only two who work in any way closely together are Fisher and Lavelle, who are connected to the judicial system in New York."

"But in very different ways," Ryuuzaki said. "One is a defense lawyer and the other is an occasional consultant for the police."

"And they're both alive," Raito said.

"This man you share your room with," Ryuuzaki did another subject flip, "Is he the one who's interested in you?"

"He flirts," Raito said. "But I'm sure he doesn't mean anything by it_." Fuck, Raito, never tell him about that damn strip show! Why the hell did I do that anyway? _

"How sure are you?"

"Well – almost sure."

"Ninety per cent sure? Eighty five? Don't tell me seventy, that's far too low."

"At least eighty five," Raito said, smiling. "His circumstances are – well, he just wouldn't be interested. I think it's just his way of being friendly." _And outing me to my dad, is that his way of being friendly? Wait a minute – _

"Something wrong, Raito?"

"My father thought this man was my boyfriend," Raito said. "I thought at the time it was an odd thing for him to think. Nothing had happened to give him an idea like that."

"The flirting?"

"I think he formed the idea before he'd seen any of it. I got the impression that the flirting confirmed his impression rather than caused it." Raito put his chin on his hand, stared into space. "He said something to my father. He must have done. But what would he have said? And why? Don't you think that'd be a strange thing to do, implying that you're someone's boyfriend when the someone doesn't have any idea about it?"

"It does sound a little eccentric," Ryuuzaki agreed.

"Especially when there's really no way this person could be interested in me," Raito went on.

"Because of his circumstances?"

"Well, yes, and – other things," Raito muttered vaguely. _I'm crazy. L interested in me? I mean, this is L and to quote myself, he could have anybody he likes. Although I suppose he doesn't – if he's so paranoid – and we do seem to be getting along well... I don't even know what he looks like..._

"I might be jealous, Raito," Ryuuzaki said, "if you spend much more time thinking about somebody else."

"I'm not thinking about him, really," Raito said hastily. "It's just that it's a puzzle."

"Let us work on solving your other puzzle first," Ryuuzaki said. "If you've finished, Raito?"

Raito paid, noticing that Ryuuzaki didn't offer to contribute. _Well, I asked him. I suppose it's a good thing that he's comfortable with that. Of course, he could just be poor. Or tight-fisted._

By mid-afternoon, Raito was tired of gay bars. Tired of banging on doors of closed gay bars and finding someone who could talk to them. Tired of going in open gay bars and getting his ass groped. Which Ryuuzaki never seemed to be aware of. _So much for protecting me! Not that I need it! But it would be nice if he'd at least make the effort..._

"There's one more place he went to," Raito said. "It should be open by now. HX club."

"What's that?" Ryuuzaki said.

"It's a sex club."

"Where people go for sex?"

"Yes," Raito said. "Don't even think about it. I'm not doing anything in that kind of place."

"Raito is so particular," Ryuuzaki sighed.

"I just want it to be nice," Raito said. "Or at least, not completely perverse."

He showed his ID to the doorman and they went in, cornering one of the bar staff and bringing out the photo of Juste Fisher that Mogi had taken.

"Oh, gaijins all look the same to me," the boy said, dismissively. "You've seen one, you've seen – that hair looks familiar though. I remember wondering if it was genuinely curly or, you know, perm or something... let me think. Who did I see him with? Oh yeah, the American guy. The singer."

"Singer?"

"Him," the young barman pointed across the room to where a group of three young Japanese men were sitting in close conversation.

"Which of those apparently Asian types would you describe as American?" Ryuuzaki asked.

"All of them," the barman said. "You want the guy with the butterfly t-shirt."

Raito led the way through the room, now filling up with a clientele whose aim seemed to be to undress each other in the shortest time possible. Felt something familiar as he pushed past a laughing group of semi-naked young men.

"Ryuuzaki!" he turned in annoyance.

"Yes, Raito?"

"People keep groping my ass!" Raito exclaimed. "Don't you even notice it? Do you think I want them to?"

"Groping your ass, Raito?" Ryuuzaki's eyes were wide, a picture of innocence.

"It's you, isn't it!" Raito waved his finger in his companion's face. "All that groping – you've been doing it!"

"Does Raito really think I would permit anyone else at all to grope his beautiful behind?" Ryuuzaki gave a wicked smile.

"You could have told me," Raito grumbled. "I've been blaming everybody else."

He stalked away from the unrepentant ass-feeler and approached the table they'd been directed to.

"I don't like it here!" the youngest of the men at the table was saying in English. "I don't want to have sex with strangers and get my ass groped every time I go to the bathroom!"

Raito nodded involuntarily, completely in sympathy with this point of view.

"Don't be such a wuss, Taku." the central figure of the group spoke. The one in the butterfly t-shirt, Raito noted. "Just tell em you're not interested."

"Excuse me?" Raito said.

The three stared up at him from their seats.

"Any time," said Butterfly with what Raito conceded was a very sexy smile.

"I understand you spent some time yesterday with this man?" Raito held out the photo.

"Who wants to know?"

"Police," Raito said, producing his ID.

"And who's he?" Butterfly nodded at Ryuuzaki, after perusing the ID card and handing it back.

"Boyfriend," Ryuuzaki said.

"A police officer with a boyfriend?" The slim youth who'd been silent so far looked up with a grin.

"What can I say, I'm human," Raito shrugged.

"I'm Toshi, these are Taku and Kisho," Butterfly said. "We're Fusion."

"No, it's not a sex practise," Kisho said. "We're a band."

"Apart from our keyboard player," Taku said.

"He couldn't afford to come," Toshi said.

"We've got family here, so we can stay with them," Kisho added.

"I slept with this guy yesterday," Toshi said, poking a finger at the photo.

"You're sure it was him?" Raito asked.

"Sure I'm sure," Toshi said. "What a slut! We spent two hours at my grandma's place while she was out, I bring him back here and next time I see him he's getting off with someone else!"

"That sounds about right," Raito conceded.

"What's he done?" Toshi said. "Raped somebody?"

"Probably nothing," Raito said. "Is the person he was with after you here today?"

"No, but I know him," Toshi said. "Give me your number, I'll get him to give you a call."

Raito took out a card and handed it to the young man, then wrote his full name and address down.

"Maybe I'll call you myself," Toshi said with a grin.

"Hey!" said Ryuuzaki. "Boyfriend! Right here!"

"Threesome?" Toshi suggested.

"Definitely not," Ryuuzaki said.

"You want to be careful of him," Toshi leaned across and whispered quite audibly. "The possessive ones are always the worst."

"I'll bear it in mind," Raito said as they turned to go.

"Back to work?" Ryuuzaki said, rather wistfully as they walked down the street toward the station.

"I'm afraid so," Raito agreed.

"I suppose we should say goodbye then," Ryuuzaki stopped in the middle of the street, people flowing around him like water around a sudden boulder. He stuck his thumb in his mouth and contemplated the sky.

"Are you taking the train?" Raito asked.

"No," Ryuuzaki didn't elaborate.

"I hope I'll see you again soon," Raito said, lingering although his train was due.

Ryuuzaki seemed to decide something. He took his thumb out of his mouth, fished around in his pocket and brought out a handful of small brown wrapped candies. Inspected them closely and after much deliberation picked one out, which, to Raito, looked identical to all the others.

"Uncle Joe's Mint Balls," he remarked in English.

"Pardon?" Raito was sure he hadn't heard that right.

"Made at the Toffee Works in Wigan. Lancashire."

"England?" Raito said.

"Yes. This one is for you."

"Uh... thank you," Raito took the sweet and looked at it, nonplussed.

"They're quite difficult to find anywhere else," Ryuuzaki said.

"That's very kind of you, Ryuuzaki," Raito said, putting the mint into the pocket of his jacket. "I'll, uh, treasure it."

"It's a keepsake," Ryuuzaki looked up at Raito through his bangs, smiling. Then reached out, almost cautiously, stroking his fingers gently over Raito's lips.

Raito, hoping he was interpreting the gesture correctly, leaned forward and pressed his lips to the other man's. Arms came up to wrap around each other, bodies pressed close as their lips explored, tasting, learning, tongues barely touching. Raito hugged the other man close, then lifted his hands to twine into the thick mass of his hair which he now realised he'd been longing to touch since they'd met. Felt fingers in his own hair, tight, tilting his head back as his lips were passionately claimed. Became aware that Ryuuzaki was as tall as himself when he stood up straight. And a hell of a lot stronger than he looked. Raito shuddered and heard himself whimper into the kiss, clutched at his companion, body awash with heat and arousal.

"My train," Raito pulled back, breathless, lightheaded.

"Call me," Ryuuzaki said.

"I will," Raito backed away a couple of paces, almost stumbling, eyes on Ryuuzaki's dark gaze, then turned and hurried for his train.

He slowed down as he reached the station, realising it was already too late. He'd have to wait for the next one. Looked back, not expecting to see Ryuuzaki still there, then stopped, staring. The bushy-haired man was getting into a car. Not just any car either. A large, expensive, black Mercedes. It wasn't possible to see through the tinted windows, but Ryuuzaki was getting into the back. _He has a driver. So – is he rich? Tinted windows too. Rich and secretive... he wants to feel he can be himself with me, but he doesn't... you're a mystery, Ryuuzaki! But you should know by now – solving mysteries is what I'm good at..._


	9. Chapter 9

In which L suddenly becomes very helpful and Raito sees things from a new direction XD

_SPOILERS: AU, no spoilers apart from possibly L's real name, I don't know yet._

_DISCLAIMER: I don't own Death Note or its characters. I just think of them as lego bricks for building something new XD_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

Raito left the elevator and walked down the corridor to his room, a smile on his face. Which disappeared as Velasquez came out of his room, followed by a pretty young Asian man with bleached blond hair.

"Yagami-san!" Velasquez said, cheerfully. "Given any more thought to my offer yet?"

"I've nothing to think about," Raito said. "I'm spoken for."

"You've got somebody?" Velasquez' face fell into a rather sullen pout. "Who is he?"

"I really don't think that's any of your business, Mr Velasquez," Raito said, about to walk past the man, but Velasquez sidestepped, putting himself in the detective's path. Raito didn't fail to notice the look of annoyance on the young Asian's face at this.

"I don't think we've been introduced?" he said.

"That's just my secretary," Velasquez said, dismissively. "Johnny Chang. But Yagami-san, listen to me. You're a detective, right?"

"Yes, I think that's fairly obvious," Raito said. _Since you're now probably my prime suspect for a set of very nasty murders._

"So I guess you're not all that well-paid?" Velasquez went on.

"Mr Velasquez," Raito gave the man a cold stare. "If this conversation is about to go where I think it is, I suggest you stop right now."

"I'm rich," Velasquez ignored the suggestion.

"And I'm not interested," Raito said. _How much trouble could I get in if I hit him? Quite a lot. Would it be worth it?_

"I could buy you – I don't know, clothes, a new car, anything you want."

"I don't want anything you have to offer," Raito said. "But if you don't move out of my way, I'm going to give you something, Mr Velasquez. I'm going to give you the chance to experience life in a Japanese hospital."

"Hey, there's no need to get aggressive!" Velasquez said, still not moving.

"You're quite correct," Raito said, giving the man a smile that had nothing to do with good humor. "Why don't I just charge you with offering a bribe to a police officer?"

"Come on, Ramon, let's go, you'll be late for your interview!" Chang grabbed his employer by the arm and brushed past Raito, who wrinkled his nose, getting a whiff of something acrid from him.

"I'll talk to you later!" Velasquez called back as he was pulled along the corridor.

"Please don't!" Raito muttered, heading for his own room.

He opened the door, then glanced back as movement caught his eye. Was amused to see Juste Fisher's head poke out of his room, watching as Velasquez got in the elevator. Then he turned the other way and saw Raito.

"Psst!" the lawyer beckoned. "Come in here!"

"I'm not inter – " Raito began.

"Get over yourself!" Fisher said. "We want to do an experiment with you!"

"That's what I'm worried about," Raito said.

"Bring L as well," Lavelle stuck his head out. "His laptop. I want him to see this."

Raito shrugged, but reckoned they couldn't have anything too personal in mind if they wanted L involved with it. He went into his room, explained to the laptop that he was needed, then carried it down the corridor.

"Raito-kun has carried me over the threshhold!" L said, as he was set down on a table in Fisher's room. "My life is complete."

"Ridiculous man," Raito muttered. "You know Velasquez just offered me money to have sex with him!"

"He did what!" Even through the computerized monotony, L's tone sounded displeased.

"Offered to buy me a new car," Raito said. "Do I strike you as someone who'd do that?"

"No, of course not," L said. "I cannot imagine Raito-kun doing anything he did not want to do. For whatever consideration."

"Damn straight," Raito said. "So what is this experiment you want to do?"

"We want you to get in the closet, Raito!" Fisher said.

"But he only just came out of there," said L.

"For God's sake, L!" Raito exclaimed.

"What is your problem, Raito-kun?" the computerized voice asked. "Are you ashamed of your sexuality?"

"Tch!" Raito decided to ignore the annoying piece of technology.

"Can you do a handstand?" Fisher asked.

"Yes," Raito said. "At least – I haven't done one for a while – "

"Try it," Lavelle said.

Raito shoved a table to one side, distracted by a quiet laugh from the laptop and looked down at the floor. The carpet was thick enough to absorb the shock if it turned out he had forgotten how to handstand. He shrugged and went for it. Came back upright in a hurry as the contents of his pockets emptied onto the floor.

"Taking your jacket off might have been a good plan," Lavelle remarked.

"He's so obedient, isn't he," Fisher said as the three of them picked up keys and loose change. "Never even asks why we want him to do it."

"That's because he's already worked it out," L said. "Raito-kun has a remarkable mind."

"What I don't know is why me?" Raito said, groping under the table for some coins that had rolled under there. "Why can't one of you get in the wardrobe?"

"We worked out you were the nearest in weight to Ramon," Fisher said. "He's kind of chunky."

"I'm not chunky!" Raito exclaimed.

"No, but you're taller," Fisher said. "It works out the same."

"What's this?" Lavelle bent and picked up the candy that Ryuuzaki had given Raito. Sniffed at it. "Where did you get this?"

"My, uh, my boyfriend gave it to me," Raito said.

"Your_ boyfriend?"_ Lavelle stared at Raito. Then smirked. "Your boyfriend, hm?"

"Yes, I have a boyfriend," Raito said, taking the candy from Lavelle. "I'm sure there's nothing strange about that. Not to you, anyway."

"Aren't you going to eat it?" Fisher said. "If you don't like them, I'll eat it for you."

"No thank you," Raito took off his jacket and hung it on a chair. "It's not for eating. It's a – remembrance."

"Your boyfriend gives you sweeties as love tokens?" Fisher grinned. "That's strange."

"You sing soprano in the shower," Raito said. "Don't lecture me about what's strange and what's not."

He emptied his trouser pockets as well, Lavelle brushing past him, muttering something in Fisher's ear as he went past the other man. Raito didn't hear what was said, but he couldn't miss the choked snort of laughter or the incredulous look on Fisher's face.

"What?" Raito said.

"Nothing," Fisher said. "Nothing about you, anyway. Don't be so paranoid. Is he cute?"

"Who?"

"Santa Claus," Lavelle said.

"Oh, yeah, _he's_ cute!" Fisher said, rolling his eyes. "Santa! Come down my chimney! See how naughty _and_ nice I can be! But I meant your boyfriend, Raito. Is he cute?"

"Yes," Raito said.

"Cute as a button?"

"What kind of button?" Raito asked.

"Cute button," Fisher said. "One of those you get on kid's clothes."

Raito thought about that. The big eyes and overdone expressions. "Maybe."

"So kawaii cute, not buff cute?"

"Maybe," Raito repeated.

"What, don't you know what he looks like – ow!" Fisher said as Lavelle trod on his foot.

"Of course I know what he looks like," Raito said. "Otherwise I wouldn't know he's cute, would I?"

"Let's get on with this," Lavelle suggested. "Raito, try and hang yourself up in the closet."

"I wouldn't know where to start," Raito confessed.

"Yeah, that's what we thought," Fisher said. "There's no way somebody can hang themselves up there without any help."

"If Velasquez' Chinese secretary is lying about not knowing where he was," L said, "he could have assisted him into the wardrobe."

"We thought of that," Fisher said. "Raito, you try it. Do the handstand thing and I'll – "

"I'll help him," Lavelle interrupted.

"Why you?" Fisher's face fell.

"Because his hands aren't so likely to wander," L said.

"Oh," Fisher glanced at the laptop and shrugged. "Okay."

Raito faced the wardrobe, took a breath and went forward onto his hands, relieved to find he hadn't forgotten how. Then was completely embarrassed as Lavelle bent and grasped him around the waist, lifting him so that Raito's head was somewhere around the level of the other man's groin.

There was an outbreak of giggles from Fisher and robotic sniggering from the laptop.

"There's just one decision you need to make now, Raito," Fisher said, gasping with laughter.

"What's that?" Raito said, turning his head sideways to speak.

"Spit or swallow," Fisher said.

"I can't do it," Lavelle said, letting Raito down. "I'm about the same build as Chang so he couldn't do it either. He's not too heavy, but it's just too awkward getting him in the wardrobe door."

"Let's try with both of us," Fisher said.

"Why?" Raito asked. "He's not likely to have two accomplices, is he?"

"This is for the other half of our experiment," Lavelle said. "Presuming that Ramon by magic or some perversion of the laws of physics managed to get himself into the wardrobe, could he stay there."

"Fine," Raito muttered. Did another handstand. Found himself grasped on both sides by the other two men and lifted into the closet.

"Don't drop me," he told them.

"Don't drop him." L said. "Especially not on his pretty face."

"We're not... going to drop him," Lavelle said rather breathlessly. "Okay, we're in position."

"Wrap your legs around this pole, Raito," Fisher said.

"I have considered saying that to Raito-kun myself," L commented.

Raito growled, at a loss for words.

"Are you blushing, Raito?" Fisher leaned down to peer into Raito's face. "Or is it just the inversion that's giving you a red face?"

"Just get on with it!" Raito said.

"And that is what I hoped to hear Raito-kun saying to me," L said.

Raito refused to answer the teasing, concentrating on trying to get his feet into the small gap between the clothes rail and the top of the wardrobe_. L flirts all the time. At least, he does with me. Maybe he really does like me? I shouldn't even be thinking about that! I have a boyfriend..._

"This is a really tight fit," Fisher said.

"Cue my next line," L said.

Raito felt grateful suddenly that nobody could tell he was blushing. _L is shameless! He's even worse than – wait a minute. No, that's – insane. Impossible. Well, not impossible. I mean, L has to be somebody, doesn't he... he's not just a voice on a laptop. So if he has to be somebody, then he could actually be... anybody..._ He stared across at the white gothic L, seeing it from a whole new perpective.

"You're in!" Fisher said.

"If you say a word, L," Raito said, "I'll pour tea over your laptop."

"I wasn't going to say anything, Raito-kun," L protested. "That was for you to say, not me."

"Okay, we're going to let you go now," Lavelle said.

"But we'll grab you again before you fall on your head," Fisher said.

Raito nodded, then realised that didn't work upside-down. Wondered how ridiculous he looked, hanging by his legs from a clothes rail. _It's like some strange variety of bondage – don't think I'll say that with L in the mood he's in. _

The pressure of the others' hands on him released. There was a moment of hanging suspended, painful on his bent legs but surprisingly exhilarating, then a loud and ominous cracking sound.

"There it goes!" Fisher said, and Raito's two accomplices grabbed him again, assisting him in freeing himself from the now somewhat damaged wardrobe.

"He couldn't do it," Raito said once he was back on his feet. "Not just that it'd break. It's too damned uncomfortable."

"I asked him about it," Lavelle said. "But he insisted that was what he was doing."

"So what the hell was he doing?" Fisher wondered.

Raito put his jacket back on, started filling his pockets. Picked up the candy that Ryuuzaki had given him. Why had that surprised Lavelle? No, the candy hadn't surprised him. It was Raito saying he'd got it from his boyfriend that had surprised him. These sweets weren't common – so did Lavelle know someone who ate them? Did he know Ryuuzaki? _But if he knows him, why doesn't he just say so? What reason could he have not to? But... the only person that Lavelle seems to know here apart from his own group is... _

"Raito-kun, I have bad news for you," L's voice said.

"What!"

"Your hair is a mess," L said.

"Oh, you are so going to pay for this, L!" Raito spun around, pointing at the screen.

"It wasn't my idea!" the laptop protested.

"But you enjoyed it far too much!"

"Raito-kun does not want me to have any fun," L said. "Please take me back to my room now, where I may spend the rest of my lonely, joyless time without amusement."

Raito shook his head and picked up the laptop.

"I'll look into Velasquez some more," he told the other two. "And his secretary."

Back in their room, Raito was surprised to find dinner on the table.

"Watari brought it," L explained.

"Thanks," Raito said. "What do we know about Johnny Chang?"

"Not a lot," L said. "But I will endeavour to find out more. He does seem suspect. Any man who's called after a condom must have issues."

"Hm," Raito sat down and poured tea, his mind half on the case and half on his suspicions about the identity of his mysterious boyfriend. _Could he be L? It seems like nonsense. But – have L and Ryuuzaki ever been in the same place? Even virtually? When Ryuuzaki was on the phone to me, L was watching – but he could have turned the sound down on his laptop so I wouldn't know it was him speaking to me. And this afternoon – _

"I'll be back in a moment," Raito said. "I just need to find Matsuda."

He went into the next door room which seemed to have become an annex to their headquarters. Found Matsuda consuming sushi and watching anime on the TV.

"Yagami-kun!" the young detective smiled.

"Matsuda-san, what was the man wearing that had the motorcycle helmet on?" Raito asked.

"A motorcycle helmet?" Matsuda said.

"What else was he wearing?"

"Just clothes, Yagami-kun," Matsuda said. "A greenish shirt and khakis."

"So he probably didn't even have a motorbike," Raito said. "If you were going to wear a retro helmet and goggles, you'd probably choose the rest of your clothing to suit, ne?"

"I suppose so," Matsuda thought about this. "It probably makes it more likely that he's not a resident of Tokyo."

"Because you can't have a vehicle without already having a parking space," Raito agreed. "So the helmet is even more likely to have been simply a disguise." he made as if to leave the room and then turned back. "Oh, Matsuda, was L's laptop on this afternoon while I was out?"

"On?" Matsuda said. "His L sign wasn't on it, if that's what you mean. Why?"

"Nothing, really," Raito said casually. "He was having some technical difficulties with it, that's all."

He went back to his own room, deep in thought. _So Ryuuzaki's meeting me – and L is nowhere to be seen. That's interesting. Damn! But – if it is him... why wouldn't he tell me? If it is... that would explain why my dad thought L was my – was interested in me. He must have said too much when he was talking to otousan. Made it obvious somehow. Maybe he didn't intend this to happen? And now that it has, I suppose it's difficult for him to think how to be honest about it. He's not exactly used to revealing himself to people. Well, let's see what I can do to help him._

Raito sat down at the table and picked up his chopsticks. Stirred his noodles around. Rested his head on his other hand and sighed. Stared into space for a while. Took a bite of his dinner and chewed it slowly. Sighed some more.

"Raito-kun's gale force sighs are disturbing the papers all over the desk," L remarked.

"Hm?"

"And his eyes resemble those of a cow in labor."

"What!"

"Also he is picking at his food. What is the problem?"

"Nothing... L..." Raito murmured, staring down at his plate.

"Is Raito-kun ill?"

"No, thank you, L."

"Bored?"

"No, not at all."

"Lovesick?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Ever since Raito got back from his date, he has been moping about with tiny pink hearts floating round his head."

"No I haven't, L!" Raito said. "I was in the closet – I mean the wardrobe, for part of that time!"

"The rest of the time you have been sighing and swooning so much I expect you to put on a flouncy shirt and burst out into emo poetry!"

"That isn't even a remote possibilty," Raito said firmly.

"Did your date not go well?"

"Very well, thank you, L."

"Was there physical contact? Declarations of undying passion?"

"Yes and no."

"Contact, but no declarations."

"We kissed," Raito leaned toward the laptop confidentially. "In the street. I've never done anything like that before."

"Was it good?" L asked.

"Wonderful," Raito said, letting his eyelids droop a little, licking his lips. "He made me feel – that I'd do anything he wanted. Anything at all."

"Uhm," L, unusually, had nothing to say about that.

"He seemed a little shy at first," Raito considered.

"Perhaps, like Raito-kun, he is not overly experienced." L suggested. "Which reminds me. If Raito-kun would like to open his own laptop, I will send him the links I mentioned."

Raito did as L said, and began perusing the sites L linked him to.

"This is rather – clinical," he murmured.

"It gets better," L said.

"Sex toys?" Raito said. "I don't have any sex toys."

"Raito-kun is a deprived child," L commented.

"What would you say you are, L, top, bottom or versatile?"

"I am certainly versatile, Raito-kun, in many ways," L said. "So I would expect to follow suit as regards sexual practises. Sadly I do not have the experience to say for sure."

"Hm?" Raito read on. "Oh, fellatio..."

"A very attractive propositon."

"Mhm... yes." Raito agreed. "Male multiple orgasms? I didn't know that was even possible!"

"Apparently so, Raito-kun."

"Says here the best position for someone inexperienced is to be on top..."

"I am sure Raito's boyfriend would have no objection to being ridden like a pony."

"L, how do you manage to be such a gutter-mouth without actually saying anything vulgar?"

"Natural talent, Raito-kun."

"Role-playing? L, do you think you're more of a pillaging rogue or a ravished maiden?"

"I think I'd have to go with the pillager, Raito-kun," L said. "I am somewhat paranoid and the idea of putting myself in someone's power is distasteful to me."

"You'd never do that?"

"Um... once I had a fantasy about somebody stealing my handcuffs and fastening me to my own bed with them," L confessed. "But to be honest, I found it uncomfortable."

"You don't trust anyone that much?"

"One person," L said. "But sadly, he is not at all attractive to me in that way."

"Uhnn... fingers..." Raito muttered, moving on.

"Raito seems quite interested in all of this," L said. "Perhaps he would like to look at some photos of people engaged in these activities?"

"No, thanks, L, I don't dare," Raito said. Turned to look at the laptop. "Not unless you want a repeat of last night's performance."

"I have no objection," L said. "And I got the impression that Raito-kun is quite the exhibitionist."

"But I have a boyfriend now," Raito said, sweetly_. Ha! Get out of this one! _ "I'm sure he wouldn't like it if I was displaying myself to another man. Because you are a man, L, even though you look like a laptop."

Computerized laughter came from behind the screen. "Yes, Raito-kun, that's a very good point. But I have an idea."

"What's that, L?"

"Since we are at an impasse with the case for a while, why not ask your boyfriend to visit you?"

"For sex?" Raito said. _You sneaky bastard!_

"Why not?" L said. "After all, you are going to do it sooner or later. Why put it off?"

"You just want to watch," Raito accused. "I can't ask my boyfriend round and then tell him he's got an audience!"

"I could turn off my laptop."

"And turn it on again, like you did last night?"

"I could promise to leave it off for the duration of the visit," L offered.

"You'd do that for me?" _Don't be too obvious, Raito... just give him the chance to not have to be in two places at the same time._

"I think of Raito-kun as a friend," L said. "I don't have many of those. So of course I would like to help him get into his lover's pants if that is what he wishes."

"That's kind of you," Raito said, giving the laptop a look of adoration. _Helping yourself into mine, more like!_

"So what do you say, Raito-kun?" L said.

Raito smiled. And reached for his phone.


	10. Chapter 10

Okay, after telling everyone I wasn't updating until Monday – this is for badmoon who wanted the next chapter and I can't resist the bloody chibi-look XD

_And for Deliciously Tormented who's going to camp on Monday. Also for everyone else that wanted the next one quick XD _

_There's a bit of a cliffie at the end – but I will update it again very soon. It would have been too long if I went on and I wanted to take my time over the next bit anyway XD_

_Thanks to sparky for the review – I tried to reply but it bounced in the mail. Good guess! No comment! XD_

_And thanks to all reviewers, glad everyone's enjoying it :) If you're anonymous and I can't reply, thanks here instead :)_

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I just prefer it when they're a little – happier XD_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

Raito rushed out of the shower. "L, do you think Watari could find me some cake somewhere?"

"Cake?" the laptop replied.

"My boyfriend likes cake. And it's round about dinner time, I don't know if he's eaten or not."

"I imagine Watari has something of that kind available," L said.

"I'm going to go down and fetch him up now," Raito said. "So you might want to switch off before I get back."

"I will be gone," L said. "But Raito-kun must tell me all the details tomorrow. Size, duration, idiosyncrasies and all the rest of it."

Raito, ignoring that request, looked out the window and saw it was raining. He hurried down to the lobby and looked out of the main doors.

"I'm here, Raito-kun!"

Raito looked around and found a damp figure huddling by the doors, clutching a paper bag to his chest.

"Why didn't you come in?" the young detective demanded. "And where's your coat?"

"I forgot it," Ryuuzaki said, coming out of his corner, rain dripping off his hair.

"Come in," Raito said, grabbing the other man's hand and leading him through the doors. "Let's get you upstairs and you can take your clothes off."

They got into the elevator and Raito pressed the button for his floor. Looked back at Ryuuzaki, who gave him one of his spiky smiles.

Raito smiled back. "You did this on purpose, didn't you?"

"Did what, Raito-kun?"

Raito sighed. "Came out without your coat so you'd have to get naked in front of me."

"Raito-kun suspects me of such duplicity?" Ryuuzaki's face fell into a pout.

"Yes," Raito said, exiting the elevator and leading the way to his room. He went straight to the bathroom and fetched a towel, finding Ryuuzaki standing in the middle of the room when he got back, the bag he'd been carrying on the bedside table. He was dripping onto the carpet and staring at the L laptop.

"Aren't you going to undress?" Raito said, wrapping the towel round Ryuuzaki's head and starting to rub his hair dry.

"I thought Raito-kun did not want me to?"

"I never said that," Raito said, amused to see that Ryuuzaki was already starting to pull off his clothes. "I certainly don't want you to catch pneumonia."

Ryuuzaki peered up at Raito through his bangs as he took off his t-shirt, throwing it to the floor. The jeans rapidly followed and Raito's eyes widened as the wild-haired man's boxers were ripped off and cast aside.

"You're expecting me to believe the rain soaked through to your underwear?" Raito said.

"They are wet, Raito-kun, you can feel them if you want to."

"Did you sit in a bowl of water before you left home?" Raito asked.

"Raito-kun! That's going too far!" Ryuuzaki protested, then grinned. "I wore them in the shower."

"You're very manipulative," Raito said, severely, examining the man standing so close to him. He was extremely slim but muscular, slender waist, great legs and it seemed he hadn't been lying about the dimensions of his more intimate regions if the relaxed state was anything to go by. Raito smiled happily, deciding there was nothing not to like. "You're also very intelligent."

"Yes, I am, Raito-kun, but why do you mention it in particular?"

"Your scheme to get your clothes off," Raito said. "If it works, you get undressed. If it doesn't work, I think you're cute for doing it."

"Raito has overlooked part three," Ryuuzaki said. "If Raito sees through all of this – "

"I think about how intelligent you are," Raito finished for him. "Any more layers to this fabrication?"

"No, that is the last one," Ryuuzaki said. "I didn't know if Raito-kun would invite me to undress."

"So you decided to take matters out of my hands?" Raito said, rubbing the man's back with the towel.

"On the contrary, Raito-kun, I was hoping to put matters _into_ your hands."

"Why can't you ask me to do whatever you want to do?" Raito said, turning Ryuuzaki around to dry his chest.

Ryuuzaki said nothing, just looked up at Raito, head on one side.

Raito paused in his fussing over the man as realisation dawned. _He really is shy. He didn't think he'd be able to ask me so he did this instead... can he really be L and so unsure of himself?_ Raito considered the difference between his own outer persona and what was underneath and decided that perhaps yes, L could. _He's one of the most powerful people in the world, he'll get over it soon enough._

"You look cold," he said. "You should get into bed and have some tea."

"You have cake?" Ryuuzaki glanced at the table.

"Of course," Raito said.

"Raito-kun is kind to me," Ryuuzaki smiled and climbed into bed. Raito made tea, took it across to him together with some cake. Curled beneath the covers, his hair spiked from the rain and being dried, eyes wide as he stared at Raito, Ryuuzaki looked more like an oversized child than a man who must be several years older than Raito himself.

"I'm still cold, Raito-kun," Ryuuzaki helped himself to some cake.

"Have to see what I can do about that," Raito started to get undressed, very aware of the eyes on him, a stare that looked like a mixture of lust and nervousness_. He seems very scared of me! Is it just that he's never had sex before? If he's L, he's probably never had anything before... I'll have to encourage him._

He climbed into bed and waited for Ryuuzaki to finish his cake, amused to see that the man made it last as long as possible, cutting it into smaller and smaller pieces with his fork. When it was finally gone, Raito took the plate from him, noting that Ryuuzaki's eyes had now got so wide there seemed very little else left of his face. _Hell, he looks terrified! He looks like Sayu when she was small after a nightmare! There's a sexy thought, you look like my sister, want to sleep with me? Eeew, Raito!_

Raito sighed and leaned toward his companion who was sitting with his legs drawn up to his chest and, now he'd finished eating, the bedcovers drawn up to his chin.

"You'll get fat if you eat nothing but cake," Raito said.

"No I won't, Raito-kun," Ryuuzaki looked marginally more relaxed at the innocuous subject matter. "I use all my energy thinking."

"I bet you're flabby already," Raito said with a wicked smile. "I bet I can pinch at least half an inch."

"I don't think so, Raito-kun!" Ryuuzaki pouted. "Look for yourself!" He pulled down the covers revealing a body on which it might have been possible to pinch half a micron. Nevertheless, Raito went to work with his fingers, resolutely trying to pinch absolutely nothing. _It's getting my hands on him, right?_

"See!" Ryuuzaki said, triumphantly.

"I can see a wobbly bit right there," Raito said, indicating a point around three inches below Ryuuzaki's diaphragm.

"Where?" the other man bent over to look.

"Just there, see," Raito leaned forward, then struck like a snake, blowing a huge raspberry on his companion's stomach.

"Eee!" Ryuuzaki jerked and fell onto his back. "Raito! What are you doing!"

"I'm buzzing your belly, Ryuu!" Raito said. "And I'm going to do it again!"

He hung on determinedly as Ryuuzaki whipped from side to side, desperately trying to evade the repeated and unbearably ticklish sensations Raito inflicted on him.

"Stop! Stop!" the tortured detective wailed, flailing his arms purposelessly.

"No! Never!" Raito replied, taking a deep breath. "And this one's going right in your bellybutton!"

"EEEEEE! No! NO! Don't buzz my _bellybutton!"_

"I got him, Yagami-kun!" the voice yelled as the door burst open.

Ryuuzaki shot beneath the covers just as Raito thrust them over the top of him. Unfortunately, leaving Raito completely naked and half-erect, facing a shocked-looking Matsuda who was clutching a handcuffed young man wearing goggles.

"I, er, I caught him, Yagami-kun," Matsuda said, somewhat less aggressively. "The goggle man! He was sneaking around our corridor!"

"What the hell?" Raito leapt off the bed, staring angrily at the young detective. "Don't we knock, Matsuda-san?"

"I couldn't make myself heard above all the – all the – screaming..." Matsuda faltered to a halt.

"I think we came at a bad time," the young captive said, his glance flashing to the bed where a shock of black spiky hair stuck up above the blankets.

Raito took in the young man's pale skin and auburn hair. Went over to him and lifted up the goggles to reveal dark blue eyes_. Fuck, he's pretty! Nice eyes..._

"He doesn't look very Japanese to me, Matsuda-san," he said. "Does he look Japanese to you?"

"Hell, I don't even look Japanese to myself!" the young man agreed. "Seen L around anywhere?" A definite flicker of the delicious eyes toward the bed.

"Why?" Raito asked.

"I work for him," the captive said. "I'm Matt."

"Just Matt? No other name?"

"I don't need more than that," Matt said. "I've got nothing to prove."

Raito smiled. "L's busy elsewhere at the moment," he indicated the blank laptop. "You'll have to find Watari and ask him."

"Did we catch him?" Aizawa burst through the door at that point. Raito sighed as he noticed two of his suspects – Lavelle and Fisher, it _would_ be them – standing in the corridor and peering in as the door opened. Fisher's eyes lit up at the naked-Raito sight that met his eyes.

"False alarm," Raito said.

"Yagami-kun, what happened to your clothes?" Aizawa took a step back, which had the unfortunate consequence that he was standing in front of the door, preventing anyone from closing it.

Raito sighed, resigning himself to being a peepshow.

"I took them off, Aizawa-san," he said. "That's what I do when I go to bed."

"Hey, Tom!" Fisher waved down the corridor. "Come and look at this!"

"Nice apparatus, man," Matt remarked, giving Raito an appreciative look. _"Whoever_ you've got in that bed there, I have to commend his excellent taste."

"Thank you," Raito said, tired of the throng that seemed to be pouring through his door. "Now, since I'd like to find out for myself if he tastes excellent, perhaps you'd all like to leave?"

"Yagami-kun!" Matsuda exclaimed, blushing the color of a ripe tomato. Aizawa put his hand over his eyes and backed away.

"Unless you're planning to have me stay and do something kinky, I could do with losing the cuffs," Matt said.

"Matsuda-san?" Raito said, watching as the embarrassed detective freed the redhead.

"Um, Yagami-kun – " Matsuda began.

"Matsuda-san, in exactly thirty seconds time, I am going to recommence my bout of hot, steamy man-sex with my boyfriend," Raito said, hands on hips. "So unless you want to watch – "

Matsuda had already gone, Aizawa rapidly following.

"I tell you, I've only got to _walk_ towards a door," Matsuda's voice receded down the corridor, "And the people inside the room throw off their clothes and grab each other, even if they were mortal enemies the moment before!"

Raito stared out into the corridor. Met the eyes of Lavelle, Fisher and Duhamel. Narrowed his own.

"I guess there's no more to see here," Fisher said, and the three disappeared, sniggering.

Raito looked at the one remaining spectator. "Goodbye," he said.

"I can see why he likes _you,"_ Matt said as he leisurely departed.

Raito shook his head, locked the door and went back to the bed. Ryuuzaki's head poked up out of his cocoon of covers.

"That was exciting!" he said.

"A little too," Raito agreed. "Can I get back in there?"

Ryuuzaki smiled and disentangled himself from the blankets somewhat. Raito climbed in and put the bed back somewhere near normal, before sliding one arm around the other man's shoulders. He glanced at the door.

"I wonder who he was?"

"Nobody," said Ryuuzaki, then caught Raito's questioning glance. "Probably some indigent who wandered in off the street."

"He was very cute." Raito said, injecting just a little wistfulness into his tone.

"And you're very _mine!"_ Ryuuzaki said, indignantly.

"Possessive, ne?" Raito twined his arms around his boyfriend's neck.

"Yes!" Ryuuzaki said, his own arms wrapping firmly around Raito as if he suspected the younger man might suddenly jump up and run after the intruder. "Now what about this hot, steamy man-sex? I must say, I had no idea it involved so much damn tickling!"

"Tickling's optional," Raito said, snuggling a little closer.

"Then let's not," Ryuuzaki said.


	11. Chapter 11

Felt bad for leaving it there so I wrote the next one :) Enjoy, I won't say sleep well, because I haven't done my job right if you can sleep well after this XD

_Sorry, my review replies may be a bit delayed for the last chapter – having email difficulties and had to change to a different one temporarily._

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I own a bunch of Shakespeare plays and this chapter may finally point out that I'm completely obsessed with one of them XD_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

"What's in the bag?" Raito asked.

"Lube," Ryuuzaki smiled.

"A whole bagful of lube?" _That's optimistic! I really am never going to walk again!_

"I brought four different kinds. So that Raito-kun could choose which one he likes the best."

"That was thoughtful of you, Ryuuzaki."

Ryuuzaki leaned closer, his breath on Raito's lips as he spoke. "I did not want Raito's first experience of this nature to be unpleasant or painful."

"It's your first too," Raito said.

"I have studied the theory extensively," Ryuuzaki said.

"I've had a crash course, so between us, we should manage," Raito said, closing the small gap between them and touching Ryuuzaki's lips with his own.

They kissed, gently, Raito feeling the other man relax against him as their lips explored, Raito's tongue tracing the outline of his lover's mouth. Feeling Ryuuzaki's tongue tentatively coming out to meet his own. Ryuuzaki's skin, warm and smooth against him.

Raito moved, pushing his lover back against the pillows, straddling him. Feeling the stiffness of the other man's erection pressing against his stomach as they clung together. Stiff and slippery – he looked down to see Ryuuzaki's cock leaking precum, obviously ready for whatever might be asked of it.

"Big," Raito murmured, admiring it.

"Too big?" Ryuuzaki sounded a little nervous again.

"No, of course not," Raito told him. _How should I know? I've never done this before! Isn't it him that's supposed to be reassuring me? I might have known, with him nothing would go according to plan!_

"Shall we fu – oh, no, we're still on foreplay," Ryuuzaki murmured.

"Pardon?" _What now?_

"There should be more than just kissing," Ryuuzaki said in a professorial tone. "I made a list of the order in which events should proceed."

"Written list?" Raito asked, half expecting the other man to suddenly produce a bullet-pointed agenda from out of his hair or maybe up his ass.

"Just a mental one," Ryuuzaki looked slightly irritated. "A written one would have been better, though. Then Raito-kun and I could have studied it together, leading to an increased sense of intimacy."

"I do believe our sense of intimacy is increasing exponentially, Ryuuzaki," Raito desperately tried to stifle laughter. "I certainly feel I understand you a lot better than I did just a few hours ago."

"I'm glad to hear it, Raito," Ryuuzaki said. "I will endeavour to progress according to my script and Raito, as the more experienced party, may do whatever he pleases."

Raito opened his mouth to reply, then moaned instead as Ryuuzaki's mouth descended on his neck, sucking and biting enthusiastically, a heady mixture of pleasure and pain. He twisted his fingers into wild strands of black hair, running them through his hands, eliciting pleased murmurs from his lover.

Ryuuzaki leaned down, licking over Raito's collarbone, down to his nipple, making the young man gasp as the pink bud was flicked and teased by an expert tongue. Raito bent his head, nestling his face into the back of Ryuuzaki's hair, kissing and licking at the nape of his neck, hands stroking over the slender man's smooth torso.

"Mhm, Raito," the wild-haired one muttered, moving across to the other nipple, sucking it into his mouth, his hands sliding over Raito's waist, down to his hips, squeezing and kneading the firm flesh of his buttocks.

"Hhnnh!" Raito cried out as Ryuuzaki's hands slid around to stroke down the inside of his thighs.

"Raito-kun has an unusual specific erogenous zone just here," Ryuuzaki said, sounding proud of his discovery.

"Yes!" Raito said, hands clutching at his lover's shoulders. "Don't stop!"

He felt Ryuuzaki's hands stroking lightly over the sensitive area, then more firmly, fingertips pressing into the soft skin, hands grasping, pushing, opening.

"Fuck, yes, Ryuu!" Raito moaned. "Touch me..."

Ryuuzaki let go suddenly, reached out, grabbing the paper bag and thrusting it at Raito.

"Damn the script," he murmured, breathlessly. "Pick one."

"Eager," Raito commented, rummaging through the bag's contents_. Liquid Silk? Astroglide? Juicy Lube, strawberry kiwi flavored, what the fuck?_

"If I don't do it soon," Ryuuzaki confessed, "I won't have anything to do it with, Raito."

"It doesn't matter if it's quick, the first time," Raito said. "We can go again."

"Yes, Raito, but let's just do it now!" Ryuuzaki exclaimed.

"Strawberry, then," Raito pulled it out of the bag.

"Excellent choice," Ryuuzaki grabbed the lube which Raito noticed came in a pump like some brands of toothpaste.

"Oops," Ryuuzaki said as he fought with the pump and ended up with far too much squirting out.

"Never mind," Raito scooped some of it up and began to stroke it over his lover's erection, fingers caressing its swollen stiffness_. I can't believe that's going to be inside me. Inside me – all of that..._

"Haahh!" he gasped as Ryuuzaki's hand slipped between his legs, lubed fingers finding his entry, stroking around it gently, teasingly.

"It goes in here," Ryuuzaki said, wonderingly.

"Yes," Raito agreed.

"It seems so small," Ryuuzaki slid a finger in, making his lover whimper in pleasure. "And tight."

"Stretch it," Raito said.

"Mhm, yes, Raito," Ryuuzaki pulled out his finger, added more lube and pushed two in instead.

Raito murmured his pleasure, fingers gently caressing Ryuuzaki's member, incredibly hard and now slippery with lube. His other hand cupped his lover's sack, teasing it gently, not too much as the man seemed already a little overexcited.

"Nnnnhh!" Ryuuzaki groaned, his cock weeping precum over Raito's fingers, mixing with the strawberry scented lube. "Raito – I need to – "

"Yes, let me – " Raito knelt up, feeling the tormenting fingers leave him.

"Shall I lay down?" Ryuuzaki asked.

"No, just stay where you are," Raito said, shuffling closer to the other man. "You hold this – "

Ryuuzaki took his own shaft in his hand, holding it still as Raito positioned himself over his lover, lowering himself until he could feel the bulbous glans touching him. Took a deep breath. Pressed down, remembering what he'd read about relaxing, opening himself...

"Uhhhn!" he exclaimed as the big sleek head of Ryuuzaki's cock slid into him.

"Ohhh!" Ryuuzaki moaned. "Oh, Raito! Ow, it's tight!"

"It'll get better, don't worry," Raito gasped, not sure if he was in pain or just experiencing the most intense pleasure he'd ever felt.

"Well, slide down a bit," Ryuuzaki suggested. "That should make things more spacious."

Raito did as he was told, wincing a little as the thick pole stretched him open.

"It feels good!" he said. "It feels – I didn't think it'd feel this good..."

"It feels uncomfortable to me, Raito," Ryuuzaki muttered.

"Do you want to stop and change places?" Raito suggested.

"No!" Ryuuzaki said. "I mean, no thank you, Raito. I can do this."

"I know you can," Raito agreed, hesitantly starting to move on his lover's shaft, half closing his eyes at the blissful sensations this produced as the thick ring of muscle at his entrance was stimulated by its movement over the smooth, slick skin of Ryuuzaki's cock.

"Raito looks very aroused," Ryuuzaki said, gazing into his lover's face, eyes wide.

"That's because I am," Raito said, sliding his hands down Ryuuzaki's body to tweak his nipples, pinching them gently, then rubbing the flat of his hands over the gentle swell of the man's pectorals.

"I think I am getting more in the mood now, Raito," the bushy-haired detective said.

"Try moving a bit, Ryuuzaki," Raito suggested, breathlessly. "In fact, try moving just as much as you like."

"Raito wants me to fuck him," Ryuuzaki smiled, hands gripping firmly onto Raito's hips.

"Yes, Ryuu, please..."

Raito cried out, throwing his head back as his lover started to move under him, bucking his hips up into the tight hot passage that enclosed him. Deeper and deeper, Ryuuzaki's hard cock penetrated, making the younger man squirm on it with delight. He bent over, pressed his face against Ryuuzaki's hair, murmuring into it, kissing it.

"Raito – " Ryuuzaki turned his face up, deep black eyes staring into Raito's, reaching up to pull the auburn-haired man's head down for a kiss. Raito moaned into it, lifting himself and pressing down in time with his lover's thrusts upwards, wrapping his arms around Ryuuzaki's neck. Then the detective's other hand was on his cock, rubbing over the head with his fingers, smearing the tears of precum down the shaft, closing round him, pumping him in his fist.

Raito mewled with pleasure, unable to focus, Ryuuzaki's hand on him, Ryuuzaki's impossibly rigid member driving up inside him, Ryuuzaki's tongue pushing between his lips, taking possession of his mouth. He pushed down hard, wanting more, wanting all of the other man in him, filling him. Felt his balls tightening as he bucked his hips, jerking into his lover's hand then crying out, screaming into his mouth as he felt Ryuuzaki, swollen and huge, release into him, spurts of hot fluid filling him. Cried out again as his climax took him, hot splashes of cum splashing onto both of them, whimpering and clinging onto his lover as his body spasmed and shuddered in ecstasy.

"Uhn," Ryuuzaki murmured weakly.

Raito sagged against his lover, held by him, holding him, their hot sweaty skin pressed together.

"Need to... lie..." Ryuuzaki mumbled incoherently.

Raito disentangled himself a little, just enough for them to slide down the bed, lay together, arms and legs entwined. Lost for a while in the stillness and heat, drained, spent and satiated.

"You're beautiful, Ryuuzaki," Raito said after a while, leaning forward to kiss the slightly tiptilted nose that tempted him.

"Am I, Raito?" Ryuuzaki's eyes widened and his finger crept to his mouth.

"You're the most beautiful man I've ever seen," Raito said. "Or woman, either."

"I don't think I am the most beautiful woman, Raito," Ryuuzaki said, thoughtfully. "Since I am not one at all."

"Person, then," Raito laughed.

"Would you like it better?" Ryuuzaki asked. "If I was a woman?"

"No, I like you as you are," Raito said, hugging him closer.

"So Raito-kun is gay?"

"I don't know," Raito considered. "Bisexual maybe. I wouldn't like you any less if you were a woman."

"I've never thought of gender as the defining factor in attractiveness," Ryuuzaki said.

"I'm surprised my dad's taking it so well," Raito said.

"He loves you, Raito," Ryuuzaki said. "I mean, I am sure he must."

"Even so – "

"He has probably been troubled by your lack of interest in dating or even close friendships."

"Do you know everything about me?" Raito demanded.

"Only superficial things," Ryuuzaki said. "And now I know you make a noise like a very small kitten after you get fucked."

"Ryuu!"

"Am I not allowed to talk dirty to you, Raito? I would have thought we had reached a stage where that was permissible."

"Mm, if you want to," Raito rested his head on his lover's shoulder. "Talking of dirty, we should have a shower."

"Now?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I want to... please?"

"Raito's pleading puppy-dog eyes have persuaded me."

Raito smiled, took Ryuuzaki's hand and led him into the bathroom. Turned on the shower and stepped in, the other man following.

"Let me wash you, Ryuuzaki," he said, squirting shower gel into his hands.

Ryuuzaki smiled, watching as Raito massaged the gel over him, softly rubbing over his smooth skin. Running his finger's down the man's body, turning his shock of black pubic hair into a mass of bubbles.

"I hope this is not leading up to something else that tickles, Raito," Ryuuzaki said severely.

"No tickling," Raito said, kneeling down in front of his lover.

"Oh!" Ryuuzaki gasped as Raito began to stroke the foam over his cock, touching it gently, rewarded by a slight stirring and swelling. He slid his hand down under Ryuuzaki's sack, holding it, letting the bubbles run over it. Fingers moving further down, massaging his lover's perineum, then sliding one briefly over his entry.

"Hm," Ryuuzaki muttered. Raito glanced up and saw he was looking a little doubtful about this. _Probably too soon – he's nervous about it, isn't he. When I suggested we changed places he wasn't keen on the idea._

Instead, Raito leaned forward and ran his tongue lovingly over the semi-erect shaft of his lover's cock, licking up and down it. As it hardened, he let the head slide between his lips, lapping at it with his tongue. Felt Ryuuzaki's hands in his hair, gripping, holding him as he pushed his now stiff dick into Raito's mouth demandingly. Raito looked up, saw Ryuuzaki's eyes on him, possessive and dark with lust and pleasure.

"Raito's mouth is very attractive like that," the older man murmured. "Wrapped around me. Sucking me."

"Mfm," Raito replied, noting that as he spoke, the thick member in his mouth jerked in pleasure. He tried making other sounds, getting the same result.

"Hnnh, Raito," Ryuuzaki was leaning back against the shower wall now, his hips moving as he rhythmically thrust into his lover's mouth, obviously well on the way to another orgasm.

Raito let the throbbing organ slide from his mouth suddenly and stood up.

"What?" Ryuuzaki's half-lidded eyes shot open. "What are you doing, Raito?"

"Going back to bed," Raito said.

"I don't think so," Ryuuzaki reached out, catching the younger man in his arms. "Raito will not leave me like this, half-done!"

"You want me to finish you?" Raito smiled into his lover's rather cross face.

"Yes, Raito-kun, of course I do!"

"Make me," Raito said, twisting his wet body away from the embrace and darting across the bathroom and out the door.

He was halfway across the bedroom before Ryuuzaki caught him. _Fuck, he's fast!_ They tussled, panting, struggling together, Raito quite happy to be pushed back towards the bed, since he was convinced he could win if he really wanted to. Instead, he let the detective shove him down roughly onto the edge of the mattress, leaning over him, Raito's wrists caught in his hands.

Raito looked up at the older man, a sudden wave of arousal washing over him at the sight, Ryuuzaki staring down with a wicked light in his eyes, his breath harsh, smiling in a way that had very little to do with humor.

"Raito is teasing me too much," Ryuuzaki said, his voice low and soft, with an edge of menace Raito had never heard there before.

"Punish me," Raito murmured, refusing to be cowed by the sudden aggressiveness of his formerly gentle lover. He stared up into the black eyes challengingly, then deliberately ran the tip of his tongue over his lips, drawing the bottom one into his teeth, hearing the intake of Ryuuzaki's breath at the sensual gesture.

Ryuuzaki leaned down, the weight of his body pressing Raito into the mattress, one knee forcing its way between Raito's thighs, parting them. He grasped both of the younger man's wrists in one hand, his other reaching across the bed then back, sliding under Raito, fingers forcing their way into him, slick with lube.

"If Raito will not give me what I want," he murmured, "Then I will have to take it for myself."

"Nnhn!" Raito struggled against the intrusion and Ryuuzaki smiled down at him mockingly.

"Raito should not fight me," he said, voice silky and dangerous. "He will only make it worse for himself."

"Let me go!" Raito protested. "I don't want to – I'm sore!"

"Pity," Ryuuzaki said, pulling his fingers free, obviously deciding that Raito was prepared enough. He reached for the lube again, smearing it quickly over himself then let go of Raito's wrists, grabbed his ankles instead and before the young man could do anything, he found his legs over Ryuuzaki's shoulders and the man's cock poised at his entry, rubbing against him insistently.

"Are you prepared to be obedient yet, Raito?" the detective asked with a smirk.

"Certainly not," Raito muttered, not trusting his voice to speak any louder. Then gave up quietness in favor of a strangled shriek as Ryuuzaki drove into him, not hard enough to be painful, but relentlessly, sinking himself deep into the younger man's body.

"Fuck, Ryuu!" Raito groaned.

"Isn't this what you wanted, Raito?" Ryuuzaki asked, reaching out to take his lover's hands, twining their fingers together, holding Raito down against the bed as he began to fuck him, long strokes that brushed the head of his cock against Raito's prostate with every thrust, making the young man moan and arch off the bed.

"Yes," Raito murmured. "Yes, Ryuu, fuck me, do me, yes!"

Ryuuzaki growled deep in his throat and began to move faster, his thick shaft penetrating deeper into the tight, hot shaft that contained him. Raito stared up at his wild-eyed lover, swept away into a maelstrom of passion, desire and sheer pleasure in being so completely dominated by the other man.

"Want... you..." he muttered, writhing on the bed, trying to push himself even further onto the rigid heat that stroked inside him, making him whimper and beg for more, pulsing waves of ecstasy overwhelming him. His eyes fixed on Ryuuzaki's, the gaze like black fire ripping away his self-control, the soft grunts of pleasure as the older man pumped into him arousing him even further.

"Hahh!" he cried, head thrown back, hair whipping from side to side as the relentless, rhythmic pressure on his prostate drove him over the edge, bucking his hips against his lover as he came, his seed spattering over both their bodies, crying out again as he felt Ryuuzaki shoot inside him, the warm wetness filling him with spurt after spurt of liquid passion.

He opened his eyes that had involuntarily closed during climax, saw Ryuuzaki staring down at him looking rather amazed.

"Good grief," the detective said in English.

Raito laughed and pulled the other man down on top of him. Somehow they managed to wriggle themselves onto the bed and lay there, hot and sticky and satisfied, wrapped up in each other.

Raito smiled into his lover's neck, pleased that Ryuuzaki had enjoyed the game of domination. Wondered what it would be like to be the one in charge, his lover writhing beneath him, pinned and helpless. Decided he wouldn't even try to find out. Not now. Maybe not for a long time. The man was paranoid and fragile, there was probably no way he could comfortably accept losing control. It was like being handed a perfect rose, then finding it was made of paper. One careless movement could crush its complex convolutions beyond repair. _Why me? Why does he trust me to do this with him when he never has before? Is it because we're similar in intelligence? Because we work in the same field? Maybe just because we make each other laugh... it's not my looks, anyway, thank God. He liked me before he knew what I looked like. I wouldn't want him to have a shallow reason like that... _

There was a noise out in the corridor. Muted banging. Footsteps.

"I should go," Ryuuzaki said, regretfully.

"It's still nighttime," Raito protested, pulling the other man closer. "It's the cleaners or maids or something, nobody that's going to want to come in here."

"They'll be here soon," Ryuuzaki said, snuggling his face into the crook of Raito's neck. "It's best if I leave before they arrive. Too many explanations. Besides it's getting light."

"You can stay for a while," Raito said. He buried his face in his lover's soft, sweet-smelling hair. "That's just streetlights and neon out there, sometimes it's as bright as day."

Ryuuzaki lifted his head, stared into Raito's eyes. Kissed him.

"If you want me to stay, I will," he murmured. "I suppose if somebody should see me, it's not the end of the world."

Raito sighed. _Except maybe it is. The end of your world, anyway. Our world. Depending on who sees you..._

"You're right," he conceded. "You should go. There'll be people getting up and wandering about."

"I shall miss my Raito," Ryuuzaki said, pressing his lips gently once more to his lover's.

"You can – uh, call me," Raito said. _Or talk to me through your laptop, but better not say that, not just yet._ "Call me as often as you like. All day long if you want to."

"I will. But it's not enough," Ryuuzaki said, simply. "Now I have this, I want this."

"I'll see you again soon," Raito said, getting out of bed as the other man did the same. "Maybe tonight, ne?"

"I hope so, Raito," Ryuuzaki said. "Why are you getting up? You could sleep if you want to."

"I don't want to," Raito said, blushing slightly. "The bed's going to seem empty."

"Is that all that's going to seem empty?" Ryuuzaki reached out, running a hand over Raito's butt.

"You're impossible!" Raito's face was heating up in earnest. "You have to be the most suggestive man I ever met!"

"I don't like to do something, Raito, without being good at it," Ryuuzaki gave one of his elfin grins and pulled on his t-shirt.

Raito smiled, watched his lover dress and kissed him goodbye. Didn't go out with him, reasoning that could possibly involve Ryuuzaki in having to lie to him yet again about who he was and where he was staying.

Instead, he finished dressing and went down to the lobby. Walked out into the predawn, staring up at the sky, dazzled with the muted colors of light pollution.

Someone was leaning against the wall, smoking. A goggle-clad young man in a striped sweater. Raito went over to stand beside him.

"Has he gone?" Matt asked.

"Yes."

"What's his name?"

"You know what his name is," Raito shifted slightly, leaning back against the hotel's marble frontage.

"I don't think I do," Matt said, nonchalantly.

"I'm not playing you," Raito said with a smile. _More intelligence! I could get used to this._ "I know who he is. But best not to say, out here in the street, ne?"

"Are you in love with him?"

Raito stared at the younger man. _What a question, out of the blue!_ "I'm not sure I know what that feels like."

"It's just – this isn't the kind of thing he does. Normally."

"I got that impression," Raito said. Paused. Went on. "So if you had to say what it feels like, what would you say?"

"I don't know," Matt looked thoughtful. "I suppose it's like obsession. And – thinking about the other person before you think about yourself."

"I'm not sure I've ever done that with anybody," Raito confessed.

"Mostly," Matt continued, "It's... when you see them, you don't want to be anywhere else, you know?"

"Yes," Raito said.

"Well, if you've got it, keep it," Matt said, throwing the end of his cigarette to the ground and crushing it beneath his boot. "Make sure he knows you're exactly what he wants."

"What if I'm not?" Raito wondered.

"I don't think you need to worry." Matt said, the emphasis on the word you slight but there.

"Something you'd like to talk about?" Raito offered, delicately.

"No." Matt said. "Not now. Water under burnt bridges, you know?"

"Excuse me," Raito said.

"No problem," Matt said. "You should make your mind up, that's all. He's a difficult person. If you don't think you can handle it, best to back out while you're both still sane."

"I think I can handle it," Raito said. "He's not so hard to understand. We have a lot in common."

"Yeah?" Matt smiled and lit up another cigarette. "Then God help us all."


	12. Chapter 12

_If you've read what Mello gets up to in Night and Day – Raito is now officially... worse. This chapter was supposed to be mostly plot – but the boys got frisky. XD_

_My update schedule is down the pan due to a stomach bug, it's taken me three days to do this one. Hopefully there'll be some more by the weekend :)_

_Now I've got my 3d L and Light sorted out, I'm thinking of making a doujinshi – a downloadable one. I need a plot first that's short enough to fit in that small space. Ah well, it'll probably just be a bunch of smut, ne? XD_

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I own a digestive system that sounds like soup bubbling through a Lamborghini's exhaust..._

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

"Raito-kun!"

Raito opened his eyes. Found himself sitting on the couch in his room, staring at a shining white L.

"Huh?" he murmured.

"Good morning!" the laptop said. "I hope you didn't sleep well?"

"What?"

"That's a subtle way of suggesting you did something you liked better than sleeping," L said.

"Oh. Yes. Thanks." Raito mumbled, looking down at his creased yesterday's clothes. "I should have a shower before everyone else gets here."

"You should take the sheets off your bed, Raito, they're probably worse than last time, having had two people's contributions of body fluids."

"Nice, L," Raito got to his feet, yawning and became busy making himself and the room presentable.

He came back out of the shower, wrapped in a towel, to find breakfast on the table.

"Is Watari shy?" he said. "He always turns up while I'm out."

"No, he's simply being unobtrusive, Raito-kun," L said. "It's his way."

"Urhm," Raito slumped down into a chair, still half naked and wincing a little as his sudden contact with the seat reminded him of last night's activities. He poured himself some coffee. "I hope you found something interesting to do last night, L."

"Yes, thank you, Raito-kun, I never have any trouble amusing myself."

Raito smiled at the screen. "Nice font."

"Please, Raito-kun, you'll make me blush."

"Will your L turn pink?"

"Sadly, no. Although I could arrange that if you'd like to see it."

"Probably best if you don't," Raito said. "My father already thinks we're an item. And just what did you say to him to make him think that?" _Now he'll think I don't know who he is – but that maybe I'm wondering about it._

"I really can't imagine, Raito-kun," L said. "Perhaps he merely noticed how well we get on with one another."

"Hm," Raito raised an eyebrow.

"Does Raito-kun not believe me?"

"No, not in the slightest," Raito said, getting up from the chair and taking off his towel.

"Raito-kun is naked!" the laptop exclaimed.

"Why, so I am," Raito said, running his hands lazily down his body.

"Raito-kun says he knows I am a man and not a laptop," L protested, "but now he is treating me as part of the furniture that will not get aroused by his display."

"On the contrary, L," Raito said, turning around to give the screen a rear view, "I don't mind a bit if you get aroused by me. And you did say you had no trouble abusing yourself."

"I said amuse, Raito, not abuse."

"It could be the same thing, ne?" _Now he's wondering. Do I know and am I just teasing him? Or am I – hm, completely slutty, that's not so good..._

"Watari is standing right next to me," the laptop said.

"What!" Raito grabbed for his towel.

"I'm lying, Raito-kun." L gave a robotic snigger. "But I'm relieved to see that your exhibitionism does not extend to all and sundry."

"After yesterday, I think everyone's seen me that wanted to," Raito said, debating between red and white underwear.

"Raito's behind is perfect and should not be covered up," L said. "Also he has not told me the details of his adventures with his loved one yet."

"What do you want to know?" Raito left his underwear for the moment, slid into a t-shirt and began to comb his hair.

"How often?"

"Twice."

"Who was seme?"

"He was."

"This boyfriend of yours must be a rapacious and overwhelmingly alpha character to have persuaded Raito-kun to bottom for him. Twice." L remarked.

"Or maybe I'm just kind-hearted," Raito smiled.

"I don't suspect Raito-kun of that," L said.

"Rude," Raito said. "I can be kind if I want to."

"A learned activity... is not the same as... an innate trait, Raito-kun." the laptop said rather jerkily.

"Are you getting off on me?" Raito said, turning round to stare at the screen.

"Yes."

"Bad L," Raito smiled. "So you want to hear about my wild, fierce lover? How he chased me around the room, pinned me to the bed and ravished me mercilessly?"

"Mhm!"

"How about when I washed him in the shower – with my tongue?"

"Nhhn!"

"Or maybe you want to know about how my ass is sore this morning from being ruthlessly plundered by his oversized organ?"

"Yes... that'll do nicely..."

"He has a very big cock," Raito said, thoughtfully, coming over to the table and leaning his elbows on it, angling his body so that the screen still had a good view of his butt. "I didn't think it was going to fit inside me... because I'd never done that before. So there I was, all tight and virginal, with this absolutely huge, slippery, dripping erection I had to squeeze into me somehow..."

"Urghhh!"

"I was sitting astride him, absolutely terrified –"

"Really? You were scared?"

"Don't spoil the story, L," Raito admonished. "About to give in to his insistent demands to possess me – completely – "

"Haah!"

"Slowly descending on him... the enormous head of his stiff cock finally penetrating me... "

"Oh, God, Raito!"

"Sliding down it and filling myself up with it, such intense pleasure it was almost painful..."

"Nhnhnhnhn..."

"I couldn't stop myself moaning and begging him to fuck me, it was all I wanted – "

"Nhn! Uhn! Raito! I'm – aahh! Haah!"

"Mm, L, do I hear the sound of someone coming?" Raito smirked, ran his fingers lightly over the screen.

There was a knock at the door.

"Fuck!" Raito jumped up. "I do hear the sound of someone coming! Just a minute!" he called out, grabbing for the discarded underwear and slipping it on before going to the door. Expecting Matsuda.

"Hey," said Matt, goggleless and smiling and blowing smoke into Raito's face.

"Urgh!" Raito said. "Don't do that, you'll make my hair smell of it. Come in."

"I'm guessing I interrupted something. Again." Matt's glance strayed down to the rather obvious bulge in Raito's red boxers. "Morning, L."

"Hmh," the laptop replied.

"What did you do to him?" Matt asked, taking a seat at the table, dropping his cigarette end into Raito's empty coffee cup and helping himself to breakfast.

"Good morning, Matt," L said. "Raito, please organise everyone. I need to change my shirt."

"Spill something, L?" Raito enquired sweetly, pulling on his own shirt.

It shouldn't have been possible for a laptop to growl.

"L?" Matt said after a moment, but received no reply. He looked up at Raito. "You know he doesn't think you know who he is?"

"I know that," Raito said, zipping up his pants. "I haven't worked out how to tell him yet. Besides, he seems to be enjoying being two of them."

"So – you're getting off with him in real life," Matt said, "and you're also doing the laptop lapdance?"

"Seems that way," Raito agreed.

"Win," Matt smirked. "What if he gets jealous of himself?"

"They'll have to fight it out between them," Raito pulled on his socks, deciding he'd have to go home and get some clean ones if the case was going to go on much longer.

"Never imagined anyone teasing L that way," Matt said. "He's kind of, dunno, he's always been, you know, L. Big Daddy."

Raito laughed. "In some ways."

Matt giggled. "What, you mean – " he gestured with his hands.

"Enormous," Raito murmured. _That can't hurt his reputation. Enhance it more like. The world's best detective and hung like a horse._

The door opened tentatively to reveal Matsuda's nervous face, glancing into the room as if he was ready to flee should naked gayness be waiting for him. He breathed a sigh of relief and came in, followed by Mogi.

"What's he doing here?" Mogi asked, pointing at Matt.

"This is Matt. He works for L," Raito said, piling the breakfast things up neatly out of the way. "He's going to be helping us."

"I am?" Matt said.

"Yes," Raito told him.

"Cool."

"Did you hear the news yet this morning, Yagami-kun?" Matsuda said, sitting down at the table and helping himself to coffee.

"No, I've been – busy." Raito said.

"Oh, Death by Chocolate," Mogi said.

"Pardon?" Raito said.

"Chocolate?" the laptop asked, L obviously having returned.

"Someone's robbed two banks in Belgium," Matsuda smiled, clearly proud of his role as newsbearer. "Both times he's left a corpse behind, covered in chocolate."

"Corpse?" Raito said.

"Chocolate?" said the laptop.

"Is this the corpse of a bank employee?" Raito asked.

"No," Matsuda said. "They haven't released the details to the press, but I called someone I know in Brussels and he says the corpses are embalmed ones that have been dug up from graveyards."

"That's disgusting!" Raito said.

"Terrible," L agreed. "What a waste of good chocolate... I take it this was Belgian chocolate, Matsuda-san?"

"I don't know, L-san," Matsuda said. "I suppose so. I mean it must be freely available there."

"Not exactly freely. In fact, very expensive to purchase enough to cover two corpses," L mused. "Did these robberies take place in Brussels, Matsuda-san?"

"No, in, um, Mass – Mars – "

"Maastricht?" Matt suggested.

"Yes, that was it," Matsuda said.

"That's a very attractive city," L said. "Was the chocolate covering melted on or perhaps chocolate body paint?"

"I'm not sure, L-san," Matsuda said.

"Chocolate body paint?" Raito rolled his eyes at the laptop.

"Raito-kun should try it sometime," L said as Yagami Soichiro came into the room. "Painting his whole body with chocolate and then having it removed in a slow and sensual way by a soft, loving–"

"Good morning, L!" Soichiro interrupted. "Raito – I hope you slept well."

"Never better, otousan," Raito said.

"Let's get on with some work, then," Soichiro suggested.

"What about Johnny Chang?" Raito said, taking a seat between Matt and the laptop.

"Yeah, what's his story?" Matt said. He nudged Raito with his elbow and muttered, "Who's Johnny Chang?"

"He's Velasquez' secretary," Raito said.

"Oh, that's who he is!" Matt said. "Who the hell is Velasquez?"

"Let me bring you up to speed, Matt!" Matsuda offered helpfully.

Raito leaned toward the laptop as Matsuda explained the progress of the case so far.

"Feeling better?" he muttered.

"I felt pretty good to start with, Raito," the computerized voice unfortunately seemed to have a set volume and Raito noticed his father glancing across as L spoke. "But I feel even better than that now."

"Then my work is done," Raito smirked at the screen.

"Raito is an angel in human form," L remarked.

"You don't have very high standards for angelic behaviour, do you?"

"No standards at all, Raito." L said. "But I do think Raito looks heavenly in just his t-shirt."

"I could wear socks as well?" Raito suggested, leaning a little closer to the screen.

"No!" L said. "No socks. I hate socks. I like naked toes. Has Raito ever had his toes sucked?"

"You have a foot fetish?" Raito realised suddenly that everyone had finished talking and was staring at him. Also that he was resting his forehead against the edge of the laptop.

"What about Johnny Chang?" he said brightly, sitting up and refusing to catch anybody's eye.

"I can't find out anything about him," Matsuda said, looking perplexed. "I ran him through the system and there's no priors, I can't find any details on him from the US, he doesn't even seem to have a social security number. It's obviously an alias."

"You'd better get down there and find out who he really is," Soichiro advised. "Check his passport. If it's in a false name we can hold him on that for now."

"Did we get a DNA sample for him?" Raito asked.

"No... " Matsuda said. "Just from the main suspects."

"It didn't seem that an employee of one of the suspects would have any reason to commit the murders," Soichiro said. "But now he seems to be using an alias – "

"He could be someone that does have a reason," Raito said. "I'll go with you, Matsuda. If he feels threatened – "

"We already know he's capable of excessive violence if he's the killer," L finished for him. "If he gives you any trouble, just shoot him and we'll sort out the paperwork later."

"Um – yes, L," Raito said as he left the room_. He's not exactly law-abiding for a man who calls himself justice..._

"Hey!" Raito turned, saw Matt hurrying down the corridor after them, lighting up a cigarette. "I'll come with you."

Raito smiled. There was something about the redhead that he liked. Maybe his intelligence. Maybe his cute blue eyes. Though that was no thought for a man who already had two personae worth of boyfriend.

"So did you ever get your toes sucked?" Matt asked as they waited for the elevator.

"No," Raito smiled. "Never even thought of it."

"There's a first time for everything, Yagami-kun," Matsuda said cheerfully.

"You do stuff in front of him," Matt said, thoughtfully. "He's looking through the laptop... it's like a game, right?"

"Something like that," Raito said, giving Matsuda a sidelong glance and relieved to note the man was now studying the elevator buttons as if they held the meaning of life. Or at least if he pressed one, he might get a coffee or a coke.

"It sounds kind of interesting," Matt said. "I mean – it sounds like the kind of thing I might like to do, you know?"

Raito stared at the younger man who was blushing quite noticeably.

"So, you think he'd like to see that?" Matt said. "I mean – if you and I – "

The elevator stopped. The doors opened. Raito followed Matsuda out, slowing down to let the excited detective get ahead of them.

"I don't know," he said. "He might be jealous."

"Yeah, I thought that," Matt admitted. "I wouldn't want that. But then I thought, looking at you that way at all, it's well perverted. So I thought he'd maybe like to see you with someone."

Raito gave the readhead a look of disbelief. "This is the best you can do for subtlety?" he asked.

Matt grinned. "Not trying to be subtle."

"So is it me you want or is it him?" Raito stared at the young man, fighting back the urge to laugh.

"Dunno, really," Matt looked thoughtful. "Yeah."

"Both?"

"Yeah."

"Slut."

"Like I care!" Matt said, blushing even more furiously. "I've got fuck all else to do. And you know what they say, if you don't ask you don't get!"

Raito gave a snort of laughter. "I'll ask him."

"You will?" Matt's eyes widened. "You'd want to? Even though I'm a total slut?"

"I can see you're not really so slutty," Raito said. "If you made a habit of this kind of thing, your face wouldn't be the same color as your hair right now."

"Talking of hair," Matt said as they strolled along to where Matsuda was waiting, "is yours natural?"

"I don't dye it," Raito said, with a smile. It wasn't the first time that question had been asked. "I can prove it as well."

"I've seen – I thought you might dye that too - " Matt turned to look at Raito who had stopped dead in the middle of the corridor. "What's wrong?"

"That's what I smelled on him," Raito said. "Johnny Chang. He smelled of bleach. And there was the same smell in Velasquez' bathroom. I thought it was because he obviously dyes his hair – "

"Chang's hair's bleached," Matsuda put in. "No Chinese person has platinum blond hair."

"So he was probably the man who bought the surgical tools," Raito said. "A Chinese and a Japanese man in a motorcycle helmet would look much the same."

"He went and bought the stuff then came back and bleached his hair," Matt agreed. "So you're looking for a Japanese guy with black hair and you've got a Chinese blond."

"Looks like we might have our murderer!" Matsuda said with a smile.

"Let's find out," Raito said as he knocked at Chang's door.


	13. Chapter 13

_Back to this at last! I didn't feel too well after my stomach bug and it all read dreary._

_I've had some reviews that came with an email address attached to reply to and some of my replies have bounced back to me. So if you didn't get a review reply from me – I tried to send it, and I'd like to thank you here for the comments :)_

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I own my own characters and I'm grateful to the reviewers who think they add something to the story :)_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

"He's not answering," Matsuda tapped his foot impatiently.

"Open it," Raito said, watching as Matsuda did so, then carefully pushing the door fully open with his foot. The room was silent and the investigators went in.

"He's not in the bathroom," Matsuda said after a search.

"Not here either," Raito concluded. "He smokes."

"Nothing wrong with that," Matt said.

"Nothing at all," Raito said, bringing out a pair of tweezers and an evidence bag from his pocket and carefully helping himself to some cigarette ends from the ashtray. "In fact, incredibly thoughtful of him. Should be some saliva on here – we can get his DNA and maybe find out who he really is."

"Yeah, I hate it when they're a mystery," Matt said, slipping on a latex glove and examining a Gameboy he'd found with interest. "Hm, Pokémon."

"You like games?" Raito asked.

"Just a bit," Matt said.

Raito glanced at him. "Gamer nerd, ne?"

"Not quite that bad," Matt grinned. "I have a life. Kind of. Well, you're seeing it."

"This is it?" Raito said. "What about, uh, social interaction?"

"Didn't I already ask you about that?" Matt said, quirking an eyebrow at the detective.

Raito laughed. "Let's go see Velasquez, maybe Chang's up there doing some work for him."

"What kind of work does he do?" Matt asked as they reascended in the elevator.

"He's Velasquez' secretary," Matsuda said. "He probably, I don't know, books flights for him and makes notes about things."

"Sounds boring," Matt said.

"Someone has to do it," Raito said. "Just be glad it's not you."

They found Velasquez, after being summoned to enter his room, crawling around his floor on his hands and knees.

"Lost your contact?" Matsuda enquired.

"I don't wear contacts!" Velasquez got up onto his knees, looking rather annoyed. "I have perfect vision. I'm working."

"What at?" Matt asked, drifting over to the table with the games consoles.

"I'm getting the right point of view for a creature much smaller than human," Velasquez explained. "I'm writing a game where evil imps invade your house. Kind of like the Sims meets Gremlins."

"Sounds good," Matt said, his fingers hovering over the table.

Raito took a step toward him, catching the young man's eye and shook his head. Matt grinned and withdrew his hand.

"I was wondering if your secretary's here, Mr Velasquez?" Raito asked.

"No, he's out," Velasquez said.

"Is he coming back?" Matsuda asked.

"I hope so," Velasquez said. "I don't think he's gonna run off and find a job here, why would he?"

Raito opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by the ringing of his phone.

"Moshi moshi?" he asked it, turning away from Velazquez.

"It's me," a robotic voice said. "L," it added unnecessarily.

"You do this on the phone as well?" Raito asked.

"Don't be dirty, Raito, it's you that does it on the phone."

"I mean the voice changing thing!"

"Well, yes, there'd be no point me only doing it part of the time," L said. "Did you find him?"

"You're so impatient," Raito said. "No, he's out. We're talking to Mr Velasquez."

"I have a few things I want to ask him," L said. "Bring me down there."

"Pardon?"

"Come and get me, Raito-kun," L said. "Carry me off in your arms to Paradise."

"You mean your laptop, don't you..."

"Sadly, yes."

Raito broke the connection and turned back to the others.

"L would like to speak to you, Mr Velasquez," he said. "I'm just going to bring him down here."

"L!" Velasquez looked quite excited. "Hey, I get to meet L! I thought nobody got to meet L!"

"Not exactly meet him," Raito said, as he exited the room, grabbing Matsuda by the arm on his way. "Matsuda-san, come with me."

"What can I do, Yagami-kun?" Matsuda asked when they were in the elevator.

"Go down to the desk and make sure Chang didn't check out," Raito said. "I hardly think he'd bother if he's on the run but you never know. And take these cigarette ends, have the lab run the DNA."

"So you really think Chang did it?" Matsuda asked as they stopped at Raito's floor.

"He looks quite likely," Raito said. "I just don't know why he'd want to."

He picked up the laptop from his room, listening to L's instructions about setting him up before closing the lid and took it back to Velasquez' suite.

"What's this?" Velasquez asked as Raito came back in.

"L," Raito said. "At least, as near as you're going to get to him." He looked around the room, seeing tables scattered with paper, books and games machines. "Where can I put him? Uh, put this?"

"I can't move anything!" Velasquez said. "It'll disrupt my filing system."

"Sit him on your lap," Matt suggested. "He won't mind. He's a laptop."

"He can sit on your lap," Raito decided, preferring to keep freedom of movement. _It's quite a sexy idea though. His laptop sitting on my lap. Hell, that sounds so perverted!_

He opened the laptop and re-established L.

"Mr Velasquez," the laptop remarked as he came online.

"L," Velasquez said. "How you doing? It's a pleasure to meet you. I've always admired your work."

"Likewise, Mr Velasquez," L said. "I very much enjoyed your Zombie Bimbo Challenge."

"You play my games?" Velasquez grinned. "I'm flattered. I guess they're not so much challenge for a genius like yourself. I have to make em simple enough for anyone to play."

"I had some difficulty with the whirlpool in the tunnels of tainted love," L confessed. "Until I realised I hadn't asked three questions of the witch in the green garters."

"Yeah, you need to get that poison joystick if you're going to have any chance with the whirlpool," Matt chimed in. "Otherwise the piranhas do that dervish dance thing to you."

"I was subjected to their distressing dance three times before I realised," L said. "But once I got past there I had no more problems."

Raito coughed meaningfully, aware that Chang could return at any moment.

"So, Mr Velasquez," L said. "What exactly were you doing at the time you lied about being hung up in your closet?"

"I wasn't lying – " Velasquez protested.

"We tested it," L interrupted. "It is not possible for you to have been doing what you said, the human body isn't capable of it. So what were you doing? And let me remark at this point that any further untruths are going to make you look very suspicious indeed."

"I, er – " Velasquez hung his head, looking rather shamefaced. "I don't like to say what I was doing exactly."

"All we need to know to provide you with an alibi is the name of the person you were having sexual relations with," L said.

"What!" Velasquez looked amazed. "How did you know I was doing that?"

"I'm the world's best detective, Mr Velasquez," L said. "I know everything."

Raito kept his eyes on Velasquez, resolutely resisting the urge to roll them at the laptop. _Is that how he does it? He tells people things he can't possibly know and gets them to confirm it and then says he knew it all along? He's like – the Master of Bullshit!_

"You're – amazing!" Velasquez said, making googly eyes at the laptop, to Raito's annoyance.

"Yes, I am," L agreed. "And you're going to be honest, aren't you Mr Velasquez?"

"Can we have dinner?" Velasquez said.

"Unfortunately, I don't show my face to anyone," L said.

"You can wear a mask!" Velasquez said, enthusiastically. "I don't mind. I might even like it! You could dress up as Zorro! Hey you could wear a gimp suit!"

"Whatever kind of places do you eat out?" L asked. "I certainly don't intend to do any such thing. Besides, my affections are otherwise engaged."

"Yeah," Matt said. "He has a cute boyfriend. So back off, bitch!"

"I bet he's not as cute as me!" Velazquez said, posing, hand on hip.

"Fuck, a one eyed walrus is cuter than you!" Matt said, the laptop wobbling dangerously on his lap. Raito put out a hand to steady it.

"Perhaps we should – " he began. _These people are all mad. It's not just the suspects. Aizawa was right._

"I bet he isn't so well _hung_ as me!" Velasquez interrupted, pulling down his pants. "Uh – wait a minute, I need to wake it up..."

"We don't need to see that!" Raito protested.

"Indecent exposure," L remarked. "You do know we could arrest you for that? And just for your information, my boyfriend is much cuter than you, he's taller than you and he has a bigger wang too."

"Taller?" Velasquez stared in annoyance at the laptop, still clutching himself in one hand. "What the hell has that got to do with it? And it's not how much you've got, it's what you do with it!"

"Yeah, well, you don't have it and you're not gonna do anything with it," Matt said. "Now put it away and let's get back to business!"

"I'm rich!" Velasquez played his trump card. "I could give you anything you want, L!"

"I've already got that, thank you," L said.

"I could buy you – an apartment in New York!"

"I have one of those."

"A house in the countryside!"

"I have _several_ of those."

"With a swimming pool?"

"Olympic standard."

"I could buy you – a yacht!" Velasquez blurted out, grasping for ideas.

"I have my own private jet, do you think I couldn't afford a yacht if I wanted one?"

Raito rolled his eyes at Matt, who shrugged in a long-suffering way.

"Yagami-kun, make a note," L said. "Mr Velasquez is now guilty of offering bribes to an officer of the law, indecent exposure – which he is still in the act of and we really don't need to see something so minimalistic for any longer – and solicitation."

"Hey!" Velasquez said, pouting and finally putting himself away. "I was just being friendly, no need to take it the wrong way!"

"I don't intend to take it at all," L said. "If you think these distractions will deter me from my purpose of questioning you, I'll just have to have you restrained until you see reason."

"You can't do that!" Velasquez looked at Raito. "He can't do that, can he?"

"He's L," Raito said, suppressing a grin. "He can do whatever he wants."

"Or whoever," L said, somehow managing to inject a note of smugness into his robotic voice. "Which doesn't include you."

"It just seems to me like fate that we met!" Velasquez said, crossly. "The two greatest minds alive in the world today – "

The rest of his remarks were drowned out by Matt's laughter and computerized sniggering. Even Raito allowed himself a chuckle, though he was getting a little irritated by what he decided were Velasquez' delaying tactics.

"I may be one of them," L said, finally, "but you, Velasquez, are not the other. Now perhaps you'd like to answer my original question before I lose patience and have you thrown in a cell."

Velazquez gave the three of them a very black look. "I was doing my secretary," he mumbled sulkily.

"Doing?" L said.

"Yeah, shtupping, boinking, fucking," Velasquez elaborated.

"Why is that such a big secret?" Matt asked. "I thought the whole lot of you are a bunch of gay guys?"

"He's homophobic," Velasquez said.

"Your secretary?" Raito said.

"Well, not exactly homophobic," Velasquez went on. "Otherwise he wouldn't be working for me. But he doesn't like the idea that he's queer himself. So I can do him but I'm not allowed to tell anybody about it."

"That sounds like a sad excuse for a relationship," L remarked.

"It's not a relationship," Velasquez said, cheerfully. "What the hell would I want a relationship with my secretary for? It suits both of us. He gets laid and I get to make a booty call to whoever the hell else I want to hump without having him whining at me about it."

"And I was wondering why I found myself so incredibly relieved that I rejected you," L said.

"So you're saying," Raito took over the questioning, "that you were having sex with Mr Chang while the murders were being committed."

"Yeah, and then I climbed into the closet to make it look as if I'd been in there all along," Velasquez said. "On hindsight, not one of my better ideas."

"You do know that covering up for a suspect in a murder case is a criminal offence in itself?" Raito said severely.

"Hey, I told you what happened!" Velasquez said with an air of injured innocence. "I only lied to protect his reputation! You can check my bedsheets if you want to, you'll find all the evidence you need!"

"We shall certainly be doing that," Raito said, making a mental note to ask Matsuda to do that.

"We shall be questioning Chang about this," L said. "You should hope that he confirms your story, Velasquez. Yagami-kun, take me back to my room. Please."

Raito shrugged and picked up the laptop. _At least he said please. Even if he had to think about it. He's a little rough around the edges but I'm sure I can tame him given time._

Back in their room he set L up again, then sat at the table, going over the evidence. Matt slumped on the bed, yawning.

"Tired?" Raito asked him.

"Yeah," Matt said sleepily. "Did I leave my bag here? I need to change my clothes."

"Don't you have a room?" Raito asked.

"Nope. L said the case wouldn't take long to finish up so I didn't bother."

Raito waved a hand at the bed. "Help yourself. Have a shower if you like."

"Thanks." Matt found his bag at the end of the bed and wandered into the bathroom.

Raito sifted through what the investigators had found out, then became absorbed in typing up his reports on the case, thinking he might as well get up to date while they were waiting for Chang to appear. He looked around in some appreciation when Matt returned from the shower, stark naked, rubbing his hair with a towel.

"There's always something interesting in this room," the laptop suddenly remarked.

Matt grinned. "You've seen me naked before, L."

"You were six years old the last time," L said. "Since I'm not a pedophile, that doesn't count."

Matt sat on the edge of the bed, smiling at the laptop. Raito took the opportunity to admire him from the corner of his eye.

"Raito-kun, I can see you looking," L said. "Perhaps you also wish to undress."

"I need to be ready for when Chang comes back, L, you pervert," Raito said.

"Who is the more perverse?" L wondered. "The exhibitionist or the voyeur? Apart from which, I'd have thought you'd like to finish what you started this morning."

"I thought you did finish, L?" Raito glanced sidelong at the laptop.

"You didn't," L said.

"You want me to masturbate for you?" Raito asked, provoking a chuckle from Matt.

"I don't think you'd have to, would he, Matt?" the laptop enquired.

"He's right, L," Matt said. "You're a total pervert."

"Next you'll be wanting to come and join us," Raito remarked.

"You do know that I'm L?" the robotic voice enquired.

"Matt's seen you," said Raito.

"But what about you, Raito-kun?"

"I might have seen you."

"How do you work that out?"

"You must go out sometimes," Raito said. "Otherwise you'd get osteomalacia like those Muslim women that are wrapped up in burqas and niqabs all the time. So, if you go out, anybody might have seen you. They just don't know who it is they're looking at."

"But if I came to your bedroom and allowed you both to make free with my body," L said, "then you would know who you were looking at. And touching. And licking. And – "

"Also my boyfriend might not like it," Raito interrupted. "Since we all seem to have conveniently forgotten that I have one."

"Maybe we should invite your boyfriend round for a threesome and L can watch?" Matt said. Raito glanced at him, saw the boy was desperately trying to keep a straight face but not quite managing it.

"You might not like him," Raito said consideringly. "What if you don't think he's attractive?"

"What's he look like?" Matt asked, innocently.

"He's got lots of black hair," Raito said. "Big – no, enormous grey eyes – "

"Perhaps we should just get back to working on the case," L interrupted.

"He sounds kind of cute," Matt said, ignoring L.

"Very pale skin," Raito went on.

"I really think we've been distracted for long enough." L said.

"He's very slim, but not as if he's unhealthy or unfit," Raito smiled at the image.

"Yeah?" Matt said. "He's buff?"

"In a slender kind of way," Raito said. "Nice abs."

"Cool," Matt said, glancing at the laptop mischievously. "That's certainly interesting."

"He has beautiful hands," Raito stared into space, taking no notice of the huffing and muttering from the laptop. "Very elegant. Long fingers."

"Long fingers are good," Matt remarked. "They get into places other fingers can't."

"Definitely," Raito said.

"I need a cookie," L said. "Or alternatively, sex."

"Again?" Raito asked.

"Sex is your _alternative?"_ Matt said.

"The cookie is more accessible at the moment," L said, rather indistinctly. "And Raito-kun, I haven't had sex today apart from with myself."

"We invited you already," Matt grinned. "Not our fault you can't be arsed to come down here and inspect what's on offer. Now we've got to make do with Raito's boyfriend."

"It's hardly making do!" Raito protested. "My boyfriend would be nobody's second choice!"

"He's really cute then?" Matt asked.

"As cute as – as Pikachu." Raito assured him.

"Yeah?" Matt thought about this. "So he's pretty?"

"Extremely pretty," Raito said, ignoring the strangled sounds of a computerized voice choking on a cookie.

"Kind of – girly, then?" Matt said wickedly.

"No, not exactly girly," Raito decided that was going too far if he actually wanted to keep his cute, pretty boyfriend. "But completely kawaii, certainly."

"I think Yagami-kun should get back to work now," L said. "Before he has an orgasm through thinking over his lover's effeminate traits."

Matt made a choking sound and Raito turned to see the boy was laughing so hard he'd had to bury his head under the pillow to stifle it.

"Matt is hysterical." L said. "He needs some discipline in his life. Preferably with a paddle."

"Omigod, L," Matt stuttered out. "You want to spank me?"

"I thought Raito-kun could do it," L said.

"This isn't helping me put my mind on my work," Raito pointed out.

"You know what I'm thinking?" L said. "That first murder in New York City – "

"A test," Raito said. "The murderer wanted to see if he could go through with it, or alternatively, if he could manage the technical side of it."

"You do know what I'm thinking, Raito-kun," L said. "That's very refreshing. It makes me wonder if perhaps our man is not someone with medical experience, but someone who's learned what to do to remove someone's skull in some other way. Perhaps from a surgeon he happens to know, or books – "

"That's why he had to try it out?" Matt said, apparently deciding he was dry enough and climbing into bed.

"Yes," said Raito, staring shamelessly at the perfectly cute naked butt making itself comfortable in his bed. "But any of our suspects apart from maybe Chang is probably capable of absorbing that kind of information and putting it into practise. They're all pretty much polymaths, they're the kind of people who soak up knowledge like a sponge."

"I'm considering Duhamel again," L said. "Simply because his alibi is just too perfect. And those boys he has. Hugin and Munin."

"Aren't they something to do with Norse mythology?" Matt muttered, snuggling into the pillows.

"They were ravens that belonged to Odin, the chief of the Norse gods," L said.

"Their names mean thought and memory," Raito added. "They brought information to Odin."

"A man who calls his followers names like that might have some kind of god-complex," L speculated.

"It's possible – " Raito began, but was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Now what?" L droned.

"Can't a man get some sleep around here?" Matt demanded. "If it's those detectives of yours, Raito, tell em you're about to shag me senseless and will they come back later!"

"There will be no shagging senseless involving Raito," L said. "Not unless I get to watch."


	14. Chapter 14

_Bit of Light relief after all the Only You gloom. _

_This chapter's especially for the people who were interested in the letter that comes after M:)_

_Hajimemashite – pleased to meet you._

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now? XD_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I just squish them into some other shape like jelly in a once-white sock._

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

Raito opened the door to find Juste Fisher in full frontal seduction mode, leaning against the doorframe, batting his eyelashes and smiling a charming smile. Fortunately, none of this was directed at the detective who didn't think he could stand any more flirtation right now. Instead, Fisher's attention was directed at a rather short, pallid boy who seemed to have forgotten to get out of his pyjamas that morning.

"Do you like dancing?" Fisher was saying.

"Yes, I do," the boy said. "But only in private. And I would prefer my first sexual experience to be with somebody whom I've known for more than five minutes."

"You think I'm coming on to you?" Fisher's eyes opened wide in innocent denial.

"You think I'm stupid?" the boy asked, then turned to Raito.

"Is this the investigation headquarters for the murder case?" he asked.

"Yes, can I help you?" Raito looked the boy up and down and up again, focusing finally on a pair of eyes that seemed to be inspecting him just as closely. Eyes that were... rather familiar... _dear God, what's this? He's got a lovechild! If I stay with him, I'm going to be a step-parent! I'm not ready for that! No – how could he manage that if he was a virgin before... must be his brother or nephew or something._

"Are you looking for L?" he asked the boy.

"Why do you think that?" the boy said.

"I'm psychic," Raito said. "Come in. Both of you."

"Near?" Matt sat up in bed, looking amazed at the boy, who was toeing off his shoes with a look of distaste. "What are you doing here? I thought you were with Mello?"

"He went to Belgium," Near said. "I was bored with him anyway. He kept asking me to have sex with him. I can't imagine why that keeps happening."

"Ever looked in a mirror?" Fisher remarked. "Yagami-san, I wanted to ask you how long it's going to be before we can go home."

"Mello asked you to _sleep_ with him?" Matt sounded outraged. "That – that chocolate-flavored slapper!"

"No, Matt, I don't think he wanted to sleep at all," Near said, seriously. "I think what he had in mind – "

"Oh don't worry!" Matt leapt out of bed. "I know exactly what he had in mind!"

"That's nice," Fisher stared at Matt appreciatively. "I thought you had a boyfriend, Yagami-san. A different one."

"I do," Raito assured him, glancing nervously at the screen, but the L was silent. "Matt's just sleeping in my bed."

"Is that what you call it?"

"_Sleeping,_ Mr Fisher!"

"Call me Juste, dear, do, I feel we're practically related," Fisher smiled, his eyes never leaving Matt's more personal attributes.

"I don't think you should _ever_ have sex with Mello!" Matt waved a finger in Near's face, then pulled it back as the younger boy developed an expression that said he might bite it.

"Yagami-kun, have you seen Matsuda?" Aizawa came through the door, took one look at the scene and paled. "What – what – what – "

"Everybody – _shut up!"_ Raito yelled. The room fell silent, everyone turning to stare at him.

"Aizawa, I'm hoping Matsuda had the sense to stay down in the lobby and wait for Chang," he said. "Perhaps you could go check that he's doing so? After that, please get onto the lab, I'm waiting for a DNA report. Juste, you can go home when I tell you you can go – "

"Aymery's depressed," Fisher interjected, giving up his ogling since Matt was now getting dressed.

"How can you tell?" Raito was interested despite himself.

"Subtle signs," Fisher said. "I've known him a long time. I want to take him back to New York so he can be miserable in the discomfort of his own home."

"He doesn't live in a nice place?" Raito asked.

"His housemate's an NYPD detective and they're both slobs," Fisher confided. "I keep telling them to get a maid, but Aymery's worried she'd pry into his secrets."

"What kind of secrets?" Raito said. _Maybe a room full of pictures of semi-decapitated corpses? Serial killer trophies?_

"If I told you that, they wouldn't be secret, silly," Fisher smiled, endearingly. "So can we go?"

"I'm hoping the case will be wrapped up very soon," Raito told him. "As soon as it is I'll let you know, but for now you need to stay here."

"I knew you'd say that," Fisher said, sadly. "Hello, L."

There was no reply from the laptop. Raito glanced at it again, wondering where L had gone to. It wasn't like him to miss excitement and nudity. He shrugged. The sugar-addict had probably gone to look for more cookies.

"As for you two," he turned to Matt and Near, "I don't know who or what you're arguing about, but I'm working here and I don't appreciate the noise. If you want to scream at each other, take it elsewhere."

"I've said all I'm saying!" Matt said angrily.

"I would like some tea," Near remarked, princess-like. "And some typical Japanese food. I've been looking forward to trying it."

"Call room service," Raito said, shooing everyone else out of the room and settling back down to his work.

"L?" he said to the laptop screen, but there was still no reply.

"I don't think we've been introduced," Near said, after putting a call through to room service.

"This is Near," Matt said, rather sulkily. "Also known as the Snow Queen. Near, that's Yagami Raito. He's L's boyfriend."

"Hajimemashite," Near said, his eyes widening a little. "L's – what? "

"L is my lover," Raito said. "I hope you don't have a problem with that?"

"No, no problem," Near said, eyes practically bugging out. "You're very hostile."

"Excuse me," Raito said. "It's been a long day. To say it's not even half over yet. And L doesn't know yet that I know who he is, so I'd appreciate it if you don't tell him."

"I see," Near nodded. "I'm just wondering – I don't know a great deal about the ins and outs of interpersonal relationships – "

"No shit," Matt muttered.

" – but surely," Near went on, "if you have reached the point of your relations with L where you can describe him as your boyfriend, it's not quite appropriate for you to have Matt staying in your bed with you?"

"Matt was in my bed trying to get some sleep, Near-san," Raito explained. "As you can see, I am not in my bed. Nor am I naked or even in my pyjamas. I would think that might suggest there is nothing untoward going on between us. I also have a lot of paperwork to get through, so if you don't mind?" _Sometimes I wish I was a serial killer. I'd be really good at it. I could get rid of all the people that annoy me, and take my own case, spend my time pretending to try and catch myself. I suppose I could kill criminals as well... although they don't usually annoy me personally and in fact, provide me with a job and an income... well, it's probably a bad idea. I don't suppose L would like it if I made such a drastic career change._

"Gomen," Near said, sitting down on the bed and curling the pillows around himself. "I just don't want L to get taken for a ride down the garden path."

"Nice mixed metaphor," Matt commented.

"He's not very experienced with – with whatever you're doing with him," Near went on.

"I know that," Raito sighed, then smiled at the boy. "You've no need to worry. I'm very fond of him. No garden paths involved_." Fond of him? Fuck. What does that even mean? It sounds right though. And it's not as if I don't want to keep him happy. After all, if I don't, he might leave..._

"I'd never do anything like that with L or his boyfriend," Matt radiated sincerity. "Or both of them together, either!"

"I must say, I didn't take you for the homewrecking Lolita type, Matt," Near said, thoughtfully.

"No, hell, I'm practically a virgin!" Matt enthused, getting into his role. "Ask Raito here, I never offered to do anything like that with you, did I?"

"He's been a model of decorum," Raito lied cheerfully. "Almost boringly well-behaved. I'm sure L would agree."

"Where is he, anyway?" Matt asked, tapping on the laptop screen. "Hey, L!"

"He probably heard about a cake lying unattended somewhere," Raito suggested. "I can't help but feel there's something I'm missing here. Matt, if you're not sleeping, will you look over these notes for me?"

They sat together going through the paperwork, typed reports, scribbled notes and lab results. Near ate his sushi when it came, then joined them.

"What a ridiculous thing to use as an alibi," he said, presently. "Hanging oneself up in a closet. Anyone can see that's not going to be possible. Unless you were a stage magician I suppose. They could probably work out a way to do it."

"It'd have to be a trick closet," Matt said. "Not a normal one. Maybe, you know, with padded parts – "

"And mirrors involved," Near said. "So that there was more room than there apparently appeared to be. Does he have a Dracula costume too?"

"He has a coffin," Raito said, absently. _What? What did I say? What the fuck!_ "Where the hell is his coffin?"

"Pardon?" Near looked up, unnerving Raito again with his eyes, so like L's own.

"He said his coffin was in his secretary's room," Raito said.

"Chang," Matt supplied.

"But there was no coffin when we searched in there," Raito finished.

"That's rather a large thing to miss," Near said. "I'm presuming it was full-size? Not a toy coffin?"

"You would think of that," Matt said.

"What he said was, 'I have a coffin,' which I took to mean a, um, personal coffin," Raito said. "After him telling us he hung upside-down in the closet, I thought he meant he had a coffin to sleep in. To put himself in character for his vampire game."

"Anyhow, there was no toy coffin or any size coffin in Chang's room," Matt said.

"A toy coffin is an interesting concept," Near said. "A full-size one though, that's just peculiar."

"Yeah," Matt said. "Playing with a toy coffin is fairly weird too, Near. I can see you doing it though. Undead Transformers take over the world – "

"Is this relevant?" Raito interrupted.

"No, not a bit," Matt grinned, unrepentantly.

"Why would Velasquez' coffin go missing?" Raito wondered.

"Perhaps he's using it for its original purpose," Near said. "Perhaps he has a body in it."

"Mr Gruesome's got a point," Matt said.

"Let's go ask him where it is," Raito said, getting up and opening the door, nearly falling over his father who was about to come in.

"Otousan," Raito said. "We're looking for Velasquez' coffin, have you seen it?"

"No, I can't say I ever have, Raito," Souchiro said, doing a double take as he saw Near. "Who's this?"

"This is Near," Raito said. "He works with L."

"L seems to be importing a lot of his operatives," Souchiro said. "Good to see he's taking the case so seriously."

"I don't think he asked them," Raito said. "They just appeared."

"Yeah, we're like the Tooth Fairy," Matt said.

"Don't joke about the Tooth Fairy," Near said, reprovingly.

"What, you think my teeth'll start falling out?" asked Matt.

Raito shrugged at his father and followed the pair along the corridor, tuning out the bickering about teeth, fairies in general and the flower variety, Cottingley Fairies and eventually Santa Claus. _They're strange. L has strange, strange people working for him. He's quite strange himself. No, he's very strange. If I get involved with him – more involved with him – I'll have to deal with these odd people all the time. Do I want my life to be that interesting? Hell, yes._

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"He's not here," Raito said, standing in the middle of Velasquez' room and staring around. "All his things are here though."

"That doesn't mean much when you're as rich as him," Matt said.

"No, he could afford to abandon all of this if he needs to," Raito agreed, grabbing for his phone as it started to ring.

"It's me, Matsuda!" Matsuda said, unnecessarily.

"Yes, Matsuda-san, I have caller ID," Raito said, wearily.

"Aizawa and I got the report from the lab!"

"Great!" Raito said. "Anything useful?"

"Chang's DNA belongs to someone called Johnny Lee," Matsuda said. "He's got one prior for stealing a car when he was a young teenager, but listen to this! He was a medical student for two years!"

"That's very interesting, thanks, Matsuda-san," Raito said, closing his phone before sharing the information with his two companions.

"Looks like he's definitely in the frame," Matt said.

"I hope he doesn't realise that himself and has conveniently disappeared," Near remarked.

Raito nodded and got out his phone, calling Matsuda back, telling him to alert the airports and put out an APB for the missing Lee aka Chang. "And tell Mogi to check the restaurant or anywhere else he can think of for Velasquez," he finished. "I want to ask him a few more questions about his supposed secretary. Oh, and you can ask at the desk if Velasquez stored his coffin anywhere other than either of their rooms, it's missing."

He hurried back to his room, followed by the odd couple.

"L?" he said to the laptop, but there was still no reply.

"Maybe he fell asleep?" he murmured to himself.

"L?" Near said, disbelievingly. "He only sleeps when he has to and never when there's something more interesting to do. Oh, Matt, my shoelaces have come undone, how did that happen?"

They all stared down at Near's Nikes, which lay near the door, unworn since he arrived.

"I had them in double knots!" Near said, looking more emotional than Raito had seen him so far. "This shouldn't have happened!"

"What's the problem?" Raito asked. "Just fasten them up again."

"I don't know how," Near confessed.

"You don't know how – to tie your shoes?" Raito stared in disbelief.

"I have someone do them and then just leave them that way," Near said. "I don't wear them very often."

"No, I can see that," Raito said, having noticed the grubby state of Near's once-white socks.

"I'll do them for you," Matt offered. "I'll show you how to do them yourself again, if you want."

"You know that doesn't work, Matt," Near said, sighing. "This is my only weakness. I can solve cases that baffle the police forces of the world. I can do complex mathematical equations in my head. I can put a one-color jigsaw puzzle together in a world-record-breaking time. But I can't understand how to tie my shoes."

"God gave you that to keep you humble, Near," Matt said. "Hasn't worked too well, but still – "

Raito stared at the laptop, ignoring the chorus of loop-de-loop and pull from behind him. He was more perturbed than he liked to confess about L's absence_. What's he doing? Is he mad at me? Did he get upset about all that flirting with Matt? No, he started that... damn, what if he did it to see what I'd do? Maybe I was supposed to say, no, Matt! I belong to L alone! Shit! Shit! Fucking shit! That's what I should have done! Now he thinks I'm a slut who just slept with him because he was convenient or something..._

Raito's phone shrilled through the air and he answered it despondently.

"It's me, Matsuda!"

"I know..."

"Are you all right, Yagami-kun? You sound a bit depressed."

"I'm fine, Matsuda-san. What can I do for you?"

"Nobody knows anything about a coffin down here. They remember it – I mean, you would, wouldn't you – but they think it went with Velasquez to his room."

"Do you mean his secretary's room?" Raito asked.

"Well, they don't know what room, because they're in a bit of a mess," Matsuda said. "Someone hacked into their database and now they don't know what room anybody's in."

"What?" Raito jumped up from his chair. "Hacked into their database? Have they any idea what they were looking for?"

"They just seem – confused, Yagami-kun," Matsuda said. "They've lost their list of guests and where everyone is."

"I'm on my way down," Raito decided.

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"What's the problem?" Matt said, following Raito downstairs, Near having opted to stay in the room and find somewhere to hide his shoes away from whatever evil force had previously untied them.

"Someone hacked into the hotel database and messed up the guest list," Raito said.

"I can fix that," Matt said.

"You can?"

"I can make it better than it was before," Matt said.

"Okay, I want to know what the hacker was up to if possible," Raito said as they left the elevator on the ground floor. "It doesn't make sense that they were trying to hide their room number, since we already know where all of our suspects are."

"Well, if they weren't trying to hide something – " Matt said.

"They must have been, what, looking for something?" Raito surmised. "What could there be in this hotel that needs looking for in that kind of way?"

"Something worth doing all that work for," Matt said.

"Something hidden," Raito said. "What kind of person hides what hotel room they're in..."

He stared at Matt, finding the young man's eyes reflecting his own horrified expression.

"L!" they said in unison.


	15. Chapter 15

_The last chapter of Only You is turning out to be longer than I thought – so I finished this up in the meantime :) We have severe weather warnings here and it's pouring with rain so I'll probably get the next one done over the weekend as well! XD_

_I've had some reviews with email addresses attached again that I haven't been able to reply to – they've bounced. So thanks to everyone that's reviewed anyway, if you can log in, it's better, then I can reply to you properly :)_

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now?_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I merely join the dots and color in the resultant chaos._

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

They ran for the elevator, Raito fumbling out his phone to inform Soichiro what was going on, Matt calling Near at the same time.

"Matt, I have a favor to ask you," Raito said as they ascended.

"Sure, what is it?"

"Please can you tell L that we were just teasing him about having sex with each other?"

"You think he might be jealous?" Matt grinned. "Yeah, I'll tell him we did it because you knew who he was and we were winding him up. Not sure what I was thinking anyway. What a weird idea."

"We probably both just got carried away," Raito agreed.

"We probably would've been if L got mad with us," Matt shuddered at the thought. "Have you seen him angry?"

"No, not at all," Raito said. "He's seemed quite placid so far."

"Keep him that way," Matt advised. "Whatever it takes."

They stopped off at their floor, where Near shuffled into the elevator then pressed for the penthouse.

"Is that where L's staying?" Raito asked.

"No, Yagami-san, I thought I'd take us somewhere else and waste a little time, just for the fun of it," Near deadpanned.

"No need to be sarcastic," Raito said. _Fuck, what a sourpuss._

"He's worried, that's all," Matt said. "He always gets snippy when he's upset about something."

"I do not _get_ upset," Near said, flashing Matt a look of almost annoyance. "And I most certainly do not get _snippy."_

"Bitchy, then," Matt said. "What the fuck does this guy want with L?"

"He's a genius," Raito said. "He's got a genius brain."

"So the perpetrator probably wants to remove it as he did the others," Near agreed.

"Seems a fucking waste to me," Matt said.

"Obviously he's not sane," Near said as the elevator stopped and they all hurried out to be met by an agitated looking elderly man who was for some reason holding a plate with a slice of cake on it.

"Oh, Yagami-san!" the man exclaimed. "I need to ask you something! You have a love interest, do you not?"

"It's okay, you can cut the crap Watari, he knows his boyfriend's L," Matt explained.

"Oh," a look of surprise crossed Watari's face. "He told you?"

"I worked it out," Raito said.

"Ah. He said you were unusually intelligent," Watari said. "So – is he perhaps in your room?"

"He's not here?" Raito asked.

"No, I went to procure some cake for him and when I came back he'd gone, with no explanation," Watari said, agitatedly. "It's not like him. He always tells me where he's going."

"We think he may have been abducted by the murderer," Near said emotionlessly.

"My dad's checking the rooms of the two people we suspect," Raito said. "But I don't think he's there – one of them had a coffin and it's missing. Since that's not something you can hide under your bed or on top of your closet, it seems reasonable to presume they have another room somewhere."

"Maybe under a different name," Matt said. "But maybe he'd still have paid for it with his own card – "

"Yes, he's not a professional criminal." Near said. "So he probably doesn't have alternative identities."

"That would explain them hacking the hotel's computer system," Raito said. "Not just to find L – "

"But also to obscure the records of who had booked which room," Near finished. "Making sense of the reason why they left the database in such a mess. It seems suspicious that someone who works in that field could not have hacked into it without being detected."

"We need to get that sorted out," Matt said, heading back into the elevator. "If I can put it back together, we can find out what rooms Velasquez actually booked."

"Watari, please could you liase with my father," Raito said as Near slouched rapidly through the closing elevator door. "I need him to start searching hotel rooms, door to door."

He saw the man nod in acceptance, then they were on their way back down to the lobby where Matt quickly got to work on the hotel's computer system.

"I wonder which of them actually did the murders," Raito wondered, tapping his fingers on the front desk as he waited. "It occurs to me that Velasquez could still be innocent. His secretary probably booked the rooms using his credit card and Velasquez didn't strike me as the kind of person who'd check up on where every penny went."

"I'm interested in what his motive might be for suddenly going on a killing spree with genii as his targets," Near said, leaning against the counter next to Raito and running his fingers through his snowy hair, disordering it into an almost L-like state. "You realise that he might have decided to work his way through all of us?"

"We should stay together," Raito said. "Nobody wandering off by themselves. Especially you, Near," he said thoughtlessly, then caught the boy's look of slight irritation.

"You think I cannot defend myself against an attacker?" Near demanded.

"Um – " _Damn, now I've pissed him off. What am I going to say, you look as if you couldn't defend yourself against a mildly annoyed pussy-cat? Why did I say that anyway? He seems as if he needs taking care of – _

"I can assure you I am trained in many martial arts and forms of self-defence," Near said in a soft monotone. "And I am armed."

"No disrespect, Near," Raito said, "but Lee or Velasquez or both of them probably managed to take L somewhere without his consent and he's older and more experienced than you are."

"You have a point, Yagami-san," Near sighed. "I thought perhaps you were inclined to be misled by my small stature and lack of maturity."

"Me? No!" Raito lied.

"You're lying," Near said.

"Damn," Raito smiled despite his increasingly intense concern over L's whereabouts. "I suppose – you remind me of my sister."

"That makes me feel so much better," Near said. "Let us hope we find L soon, then you can exercise your maternal instincts on him."

"Matt's right," Raito said. "You are bitchy."

"Better than being overbearing and egotistical," Near said in a bored tone of voice.

"You _are_ egotistical," Raito said. "And I'm sure you have plenty of methods of getting your own way, just the same as I do."

"In that case I can assure Yagami-san that my own way does not include being smothered by an overprotective police officer," Near's eyes held the smallest flash of annoyance.

"Okay, just go get your brain removed if that's what you want," Raito shrugged. "Not that anyone'd no- "

"Got it!" Matt said, turning to them with a grin.

"Where?" Raito said, quite relieved that Matt had interrupted him as he was about to say something he might regret.

"726," Matt said, hurrying to join them after grabbing the room's keycard from the shelf behind the desk.

"I'm sick of this elevator," Raito said as they once again headed upwards. "All day I've been up and down."

"And not in a good way," Matt agreed.

"That would be in and out, not up and down," Near said.

"What the fuck kind of sex do you have?" Matt said, poker-faced. "It's up and down, wouldn't you agree, Raito?"

"It's always up and down when I do it," Raito said, keeping his expression blank.

Near's eyes half closed and his lips moved. Raito watched him, not daring to glance at Matt in case he cracked up.

"You are making fun of my sexual inexperience," was Near's conclusion.

"Would we be so cruel?" Matt asked, eyes innocently wide.

"Yes," Near said, departing the elevator as it stopped, in as much of an annoyed flounce as his shuffling gait would allow.

"Just can't help it," Matt muttered as they followed the white-haired boy.

"Too much temptation," Raito agreed.

They knocked on the door of 726 and waited. Knocked again.

"They're not here, just open it," Matt said and Raito glanced at him, noticing the signs of strain on the young man's normally cheerful countenance. He nodded in agreement and swiped the keycard with no result.

"This card doesn't work," he said in annoyance.

"Let me see it," Matt said, taking it from the detective. "Can't you open it another way?"

"I'm not Harry Potter," Raito said, wondering about the advisability of attempting to break the door down. _Sometimes that works... sometimes it's just embarrassing. What if I bounce off?_

"It was Hermione that opened doors best," Matt muttered, examining the keycard.

"Well, I'm definitely not her!" Raito said.

"There's a certain similarity," Near muttered, earning himself a withering glare from Raito. Deciding not to get into another argument with the white-haired prodigy, he fumbled in his pockets, wondering if he still had –

"I've got the master card," he said.

"Mastercard?" Matt looked up in surprise. "What are you going to buy?"

"Master keycard, idiot," Near muttered, snatching it from Raito and swiping it, then pushing the door open. "See, this one works."

"They damaged their own somehow," Matt said. "They must've pretended to lose it and got a spare – left this one so that nobody else could get in with it."

"Excuse me, this is a room potentially full of armed criminals," Raito rolled his eyes and pushed both his companions out of the way, staring into the room, one hand hovering near his gun.

"There's nobody here," Near bent to peer under Raito's arm then strolled into the room. Raito shook his head at his companions' careless attitudes and went to look under the bed and in the closet, then checked out the bathroom.

"Nobody," he agreed, returning to the others. "No coffin either."

"Where the hell could that be?" Matt wondered.

Raito didn't answer, his attention caught by something on the rather dusty table in the centre of the room. He slipped on a latex glove and picked it up.

"What – " Near stared at the small piece of paper, covered in doodles, numbers and in the centre, a large, gothic L.

Raito put the paper to one side and unfolded the larger sheet that had been beneath it.

"It's a plan," Near said. "A blueprint."

"Of the hotel," Raito said, recognising the layout of the rooms. "I thought they must have left but it seems they're still here. Unless they put this here to fool us, realising that we'd find this room eventually."

"You think like a criminal," Near said.

"There's no need – " Raito began.

"I meant it as a compliment," Near interrupted. "You remind me of L."

"I'm sure he doesn't have anything in common with a criminal!" Raito exclaimed.

Both young men stared at him. Matt grinned widely and even Near allowed the smallest smirk to creep onto his placid features.

"You just keep thinking that if it makes you happy," Matt advised.

"A sad case of love being blind," Near muttered. "Does this man have a laptop we can look at?"

"I never said I was in love with him!" Raito said, picking up the blueprint and the paper with L written on it. "It should be in his room, but I hardly think we'll find a file labelled 'What I did on my vacation including details of my attempt to murder the world's greatest detective.'"

"It's obvious you are taken with him, nevertheless," Near said as they left the room. "I think you're right. We shall have to rely on searching, although applying our deductive processes to the situation should help to narrow down how much we have to search."

"I like him, that's true," Raito said, opening the blueprint as they waited for the elevator. "If we discount any occupied rooms – "

"Unless he's got another accomplice," Matt put in. "And it's more than obvious that he's crazy about you."

"Another person insane enough to partially decapitate genii is far-fetched," Near said. "Serial killers usually work alone, two operating in tandem is unlikely enough. Crazy about him?"

"Totally," Matt said, getting into the elevator as it arrived. "He gets this look in his eyes like he's just seen cake."

"I didn't know he felt like that about me," Raito felt his face flush a little. "So that leaves us with empty rooms, which we can now identify, thanks to Matt's restoring the database – "

"And areas used by hotel personnel only, kitchens, storerooms and so on," Near added. "Cake, hm?"

"Some kind of incredibly good cake," Matt elaborated. "Not kitchens, they're too busy all day long. Cellars, Raito what's down there?"

"Are you sure it's cake and not a really big fruit?" Near said rather maliciously. "Don't they have boiler rooms and wine cellars and so on? Those places aren't so busy."

"We should start there," Raito said. "Let's stop off at the lobby and get my dad and Matsuda to meet us there. And Near, don't call me a fruit."

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"There's just wine here," Matt whispered. "Hey, how come it smells of wine when it's all sealed up in bottles?"

"Maybe they break some of the bottles sometimes," Near said. "Where's next, Yagami-san?"

Raito and his father both started speaking at once, then looked apologetically at each other, while the other detectives sniggered.

"I meant Yagami Raito," Near said. "No disrespect, Yagami Souchiro."

"The boiler room," Raito said, studying the blueprint which had been given to Matsuda to hold. "There are stairs up to a catwalk – I'll go up there, Matsuda and Matt you come with me. Near, you take the rest of them into the main room and hopefully we'll be able to see each other."

"You can indicate to us if you notice anything interesting from your elevated position," Near agreed.

Raito nodded and led his small team of two along the corridor, silently opening the door of the boiler room and heading through the heated, steamy atmosphere toward a steep flight of open stairs that led upwards from near the doorway. They found themselves on a narrow catwalk at the top, railings along the side of it. Looking down, Raito could make out an open space a little way from him, thought he caught a flash of movement down there. He edged forward, gesturing with one hand for the others to keep back and be quiet, unholstering his pistol with the other.

Looking down beyond the pipes and workings of the boiler room he could see Velasquez and Lee, both holding handguns and engaged in low-voiced conversation. A coffin stood near them on top of what looked like one of the trolleys used by the maids who changed the beds, presumably what the two criminals had used to transport the casket from upstairs. _Is L in there? Why else would they have it down here? But what do they_ – Raito's mind fell silent as he edged a little further along the catwalk and caught sight of a second trolley, this one covered in – _surgical tools. Surgical tools! Omigod, look at the size of that saw! L! No! Don't panic! _

He took a deep breath, held it and let it out. Carefully stood, glancing down to see the others were nearly in position, Near in the lead. Then aimed his gun at the still muttering pair.

"Police!" he said, causing them to spin round in alarm. "Drop your weapons and get on the floor!"

"Fuck!" Velasquez yelled. "This is your fault, Johnny!"

Raito looked down again, saw Near about to come around the corner of a tangle of pipes, holding, Raito was amused to notice, a short-barrelled .38 special revolver. He made a mental note to tease the boy unmercifully about carrying a ladies' gun. Also to get him some practise on a shooting range, Near held the gun as if he was nervous of it.

"Oh yes!" Lee screamed into Velasquez' face, totally ignoring Raito. "I'm sure it was all _my_ stupid idea to – "

His rant was cut off by the hollow slam of wood landing on tile as the coffin lid flew up and off onto the floor. A pale figure slowly sat up, dark and hollow eyes staring around, one white long-fingered hand reaching out.

"Aaaaaaargh!" Matsuda leapt up, flinging himself sideways into Raito, knocking the pistol from his hand. "The undead!"

Raito grabbed for his gun, missed and watched in horror as it flew through the railings to the floor below.

"You're under arrest," Near remarked as he came into view, obviously not realising that things had just gone disastrously wrong. Then stopped as the criminal pair turned on him and two gun barrels also swung in his direction.

Raito glanced rapidly around, although to his beleaguered mind it seemed as if it took hours. Matt was groping inside his clothes, presumably for a weapon. Matsuda was screaming and calling on various deities. L was crawling slowly from his casket and Near – was about to die –

Raito shrugged, offered up his own remarks to deities he didn't believe in and vaulted over the railing.

It could have been a soft landing. If Velasquez hadn't realised that vengeance in the form of a temporarily airborne detective was rapidly descending on him, it would have been. As it was, he stepped to one side, Raito landing on him awkwardly, bringing them both to the floor. Someone screamed and the detective crashed down onto his left shoulder, Velasquez underneath him, just as a gunshot echoed around the room.

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

_My grovelling apologies to recipe for insanity and anyone else that doesn't like cliffhangers – but this will not be a long one!_


	16. Chapter 16

_This chapter is for AmayaChosha. For your incredibly accurate deductive skills XD_

_Thanks to SC for your review :)_

_SPOILERS: It's AU so none really – maybe L's real name at some point. But who doesn't know that by now?_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I only cut up the bits and stitch them together into motley._

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

Raito groaned, grabbing onto Velasquez, who was starting to wriggle and joining in with the groaning theme quite loudly. Holding him one-handed was beginning to be a slight problem, but there was no choice about it since the detective's left arm didn't seem to be working too well. Or at all.

"You're arrested!" he managed. "Keep damn still, will you!"

"I can't be arrested!" Velasquez pulled himself away, Raito dragged with him as he held onto the man's torso grimly. "I have a game to write!"

"Maybe they'll let you do that in prison," Raito said, gritting his teeth as his aching shoulder was bumped along the ground and trying to look behind him to see who, if anyone, was shot. Everybody else seemed to be running around in headless chicken fashion, then Velasquez was suddenly grabbed by both arms and hauled upright by Aizawa and Mogi.

Raito sighed in relief then shrieked embarrassingly as he was grabbed into a fervent embrace and pulled to his feet.

"L, no!" he gasped out, aware of the other man's alarmed and somewhat upset expression but not really caring. "It hurts," Raito explained.

"Where?" L started poking and prodding at Raito anxiously.

"No, don't!" Raito took a step back. "My shoulder – ow, L! Leave it alone!"

"I think it's dislocated," L said, ignoring Raito's complaints. "You'll have to go to hospital along with Lee and get it pulled back into shape."

"Wonderful!" Raito said, then caught up with the rest of the detective's sentence. "Lee? He was the one that got shot? Not Near?"

"No, I'm still intact," Near appeared from behind L, looking his usual uninterested self. "Lee has a minor injury inflicted by your father who shot him. I would also like to thank you, Yagami-san for leaping on Velasquez, since I would undoubtedly have been injured or killed if you had not."

"Pleasure," Raito said, then leaned forward to mutter into his lover's ear. "L, you need to remove yourself before we have half the police force down here."

"I suppose – " L began.

Raito didn't wait for him to finish. He had some damage control to undertake. He turned on Velasquez who was standing between Aizawa and Mogi, handcuffed and looking sorry for himself.

"Why?" the detective demanded. "What the hell possessed you to kill all those people?"

"I was writing a game," Velasquez said, looking completely unrepentent.

"What?" Raito shook his head, wondering if he was suffering from some kind of hearing defect.

"I was writing a game about a serial killer," Velasquez explained. "So naturally, I had to find out what it was like to be one."

Raito stared at the killer in amazement.

"That's – odd," Near said, joining them, a look of vague puzzlement on his face.

"In hindsight, attempting to crown my achievements by adding L to my total was my only mistake," Velasquez mused. "I should have left well alone. But – the world's greatest detective – "

Raito, who'd been expecting this kind of boasting from the man who was obviously a megalomaniac, looked down, apparently trying to conceal a snigger.

"What?" Velasquez demanded. "What are you laughing at?"

"Laughing?" Raito looked up, face poorly concealing his supposed amusement. "I'm not laughing."

"Yes you are too laughing!" Velasquez exclaimed. "Are you laughing at me? Why? I did everything right!"

"I'm sure you did," Raito said soothingly.

"What the fuck is the matter with you!" Velasquez yelled. "What do you think was wrong with my plan?"

"You really don't want to know," Raito told him.

"Yes I damn well do want to know!" Velasquez stamped his foot on the ground.

"I think it's much better for you if you don't," Raito disagreed.

"Tell me!" Velasquez' face took on an unhealthy shade of red. "I'm going to prison! I'm a murderer! I'm a famous murderer!"

"I don't want to die!" Lee wailed suddenly from the background. "Ramon, I'm bleeding, help me! You promised me it'd all work out! Ramon!"

"Oh, shut up!" Velasquez said. "What a crybaby! Yagami-san, for God's sake, tell me what you think I missed!"

"You didn't miss anything, really," Raito said, biting his lip in a show of apparent indecision.

"I think you should tell him," Near leaned toward Raito, speaking confidingly. "He's going to be punished for his crimes, why make it worse for him?"

"Yes, tell me!" Velasquez insisted. "I can't bear not knowing something!"

"Well," Raito had to admit he had sympathy for that point of view. Not knowing something was the worst. "It's just – you got the wrong man."

"Pardon?" Velasquez stared uncomprehendingly at the young detective.

"Uh – L." Raito said. "I mean – it's not him. That man you kidnapped isn't L. He's a stand-in. A stunt double, if you like."

"What?" Velasquez' jaw dropped. "But – but – "

"L's in Belgium, dealing with the Death By Chocolate case," Raito said. "I don't know if you'll have heard of it – "

"Of course I've heard of it, I read the news!" Velasquez said, huffily. "But – but my case is much better than that one!"

"Apparently not in L's view," Raito said sympathetically.

"He's intrigued by the mystery of the chocolate-covered corpses," Near supplied. "And no wonder. What kind of twisted mind could conceive of that bizarre display?"

"Can we move him out of here, Raito?" Soichiro appeared behind the accused. "A car's come to take him to the station."

"Yes, we're done here," Raito said.

"What about my twisted mind!" Velasquez yelled as he was led away, turning to stare angrily at Raito and Near. "My mind is the fuck of a lot more twisted than some purveyor of candy-corpses!"

"Probably true," Near said.

"The ambulance should be here any moment, Raito," Soichiro said. "You look very uncomfortable."

"I'm all right, otousan," Raito said. "It's just dislocated I think. Nothing broken."

"Oh, that reminds me," Soichiro said. "It's not like you, Raito to leave your shoes tied when you take them off. You do know it stretches them out of shape?"

"Uh, those were Near's shoes," Raito said.

"You untied my shoes?" Near widened his eyes at Raito's father.

"It keeps them in good condition for longer," Soichiro said as he left to follow his prisoner.

"He untied my shoes," Near said, sounding rather amazed.

"He only wanted to help you look after them," Raito said, turning to look for L.

"Misplaced kindness," Near said. "You're a very expert liar, Yagami-san."

"Thank you," Raito took that as the compliment it probably was.

"An interesting man altogether," Near added. "Who prevented me from being shot."

"It seemed like a good idea at the time," Raito said, attempting to smile.

"You're in a lot of pain," Near noticed.

"I'll go to the hospital and get it fixed up as soon as the ambulance arrives," Raito said.

"Do I belong to you now?" Near said. "Isn't that an Oriental tradition? You save somebody's life and you're responsible for them for ever?"

"I'll waive that clause," Raito said.

"I'm sure it wouldn't suit either of us," Near agreed. "Give me your phone."

Raito passed it over and watched as Near typed a new number into his contacts.

"If you need anything from me," Near said, "call me."

"Thanks," Raito said, heading over toward L who was hiding behind Watari and Matt in the corner of the room. Raito wondered why he hadn't left yet.

"I hear I'm now going to Belgium, Raito-kun," L said with a smile at the younger man.

"You're welcome," Raito said.

"Oh. Yes. Thank you," L said. "That was a very good idea of yours. I really don't care for the idea of a serial killer thinking he knows what I look like. Especially one that's already tried once to encourage me on my way out of this world."

"Hm," Raito said, wondering how long the ambulance was going to be.

"I think we'll leave tomorrow," L said. "Do you have a passport, Raito-kun? Because if you don't, I can expedite acquiring one – "

"Passport?" Raito raised his eyebrows. "Why should I need such a thing, L?"

"So that you can accompany me, Raito-kun," the detective said with a look of surprise.

"Is that what I'm doing, L?" Raito said, eyes widening in mock incomprehension. "I'm afraid I didn't realise I was doing that. Since you haven't asked me."

"I thought I just did, Raito-kun?" L put his head on one side, staring at Raito.

"No, you told me," Raito said.

"It's much the same isn't it?" L's thumb went to his mouth.

"Actually, it's not the same in any way whatsoever," Raito said. "Apart from which, I can't just run off to Belgium on a whim. I have a job – "

"Which you cannot perform due to your current injury," L interrupted. "You'll be off sick for at least two weeks."

"I do have other things I like to do besides work," Raito said.

"Such as?" L pouted.

"Uh – " _What the fuck? What do I do when I'm not working? Do I do anything? Hell, what a boring person I must be!_ "Uh, I play the piano – " he managed.

"One-handed?"

"It could be a challenge," Raito gave the older man an icy glare.

"So could a fascinating and mysterious case involving chocolate!" L said, rather snappily.

"I'm not denying it," Raito said. "I'm sure you'll enjoy it a great deal."

"Raito-kun really does not wish to come with me?" L's pout had now reached gargantuan proportions.

"I didn't say I didn't want to, L," Raito said. "I just don't like you presuming that I will, as if I'm some, I don't know, boytoy that has to follow you wherever you go."

"I merely thought Raito-kun would enjoy working on such a peculiar case, given his incredibly accurate deductive skills that are often wasted on the sadly minimalistic crime rate in Tokyo." L drew himself up to his full height, which put his eyes on a level with Raito's. "And I presumed that he might like to spend some time with me. It seems I was wrong."

"There's no need to be such a bitch about it," Raito said, crossly.

"Why not?" L huffed. "It gives us something else in common, does it not?"

"I don't think we have all that much in common at all," Raito hissed, leaning forward to stare into the other man's face. "Since I'm not a spoiled brat who thinks that everyone has to do whatever he says just because he says so."

"You must be joking!" L also leaned forward so that the pair were almost nose to nose. "Yagami Raito, you have got to be the single most arrogant, egotistical, domineering person I have ever met in my life. Ever!"

"Take a look in a mirror sometime, you'll see a worse one," Raito recommended. "And at least I'm polite about getting people to do what I want!"

"There is nothing wrong with my manners!" L said, glaring into the other detective's eyes.

"There's everything wrong with your damn manners!" Raito exclaimed. "Let's start with the fact that you don't _have_ any, shall we?"

"I can see that I am wasting my time attempting to persuade Yagami-kun to accompany me anywhere," L said with a disdainful sniff. "Consider the offer withdrawn."

"With the greatest of pleasure," Raito growled. "Since it wasn't an offer, it was a fucking order!"

"Pardon me for not remembering that I need to massage Yagami-kun's ego at all times," L took a step back, waving at Raito dismissively.

"It seems Ryuuzaki is only interested in someone who is prepared to massage certain other parts of his person," Raito said crudely. "And keep their mouth shut when it's not open for sexual purposes!"

"If that was all I wanted, I would have found it elsewhere by now," L said, eyes flashing. "Do you think you are the only man in the world with a pretty face and a – a nice tush?"

"Obviously not," Raito said spitefully. "But I'm the only one you've slept with. And given your attitude, somehow I don't find that incredibly surprising."

L opened his mouth to retort but Raito wasn't having it. Determined to have the last word he spun on his heel despite the pain the movement transmitted to his shoulder and walked away, leaving the detective hanging.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Raito sighed, looking around the hotel room that had been the investigation's headquarters and briefly, his own bedroom. His and L's bedroom. Not that that was something he wanted to think about right now. He'd finally returned from the hospital, his left arm in a large and inconvenient sling, after discharging himself against his doctor's suggestion to stay overnight.

The boredom of waiting for treatment had been alleviated by persuading Matsuda to bring in Raito's laptop and type in queries about the Death By Chocolate robberies. Raito felt he was now up to speed with the background of the case, although he wasn't at all sure why he wanted to know about it. _Not as if I'm going to be investigating it. I blew that, didn't I? Well, he did. That bastard! I mean, it's not as if... I hardly know him, anyway. It's just an infatuation. He's so different to anyone else I've ever met, that's what it is._

He folded his last pair of underwear – _L gave me these_ – and put it into the bag his father had brought for him. _Good thing I don't have any more clothes with me, packing one-handed isn't too easy._ There was nothing left in the room now apart from Raito's meagre possessions and the laptop L had used. _I wonder why he hasn't sent someone down for that?_

He fumbled out his phone and called the number Near had given him.

"N," a voice said succinctly.

"Yagami Raito," Raito said. "I wondered what I should do with this laptop of L's?"

"Oh, yes," Near said. "Would you like to bring it up?"

"Bring it?" Raito said. "Uh... yes, but – is he there? I don't really want to – well, see him. I don't want another row."

"No, he's not here," Near said. "He's gone somewhere with Watari to arrange about our flight to Belgium."

"I'll be there in a couple of minutes," Raito said, breaking the connection. He stared around the room again, his gaze caught by the bed. _He was so – so sweet. So enthusiastic! I thought he liked me. He must have liked me, it's as he said, if he'd wanted somebody else he would have done it before now._

Raito fished in his pockets and brought out his notepad and a pen. Stared at them for a moment. Then put them down on the table and opened L's laptop, gazing at the blank screen as if it had some answer for him. _What do I want? He's arrogant and quite unpleasant when he doesn't get his own way. But – he's sexy and he makes me laugh._ Raito's fingers absently traced the outline of a letter onto the screen before him. _He's rude and selfish and thinks he can get away with anything. But – he's beautiful and intelligent and he understands me. We're a lot alike really._

He nodded his head as if agreeing with himself about something. Awkwardly tore out a sheet of paper from the notepad and wrote four words on it, then slipped it into the laptop and closed the lid.

Returning the pad and pen to his pocket, he managed to pick up the laptop in his one working arm and turned to the door. Realised it was closed and put the machine down again. Opened the door. Picked up the laptop again, struggling to balance it. _Why can't Near come and pick up the damn thing, he knows I only have one hand to carry it!_

He went out into the hallway, pulling the door closed with his foot and stared down the corridor, thinking about the message he'd left in L's laptop. _There's still time to take it out again. I don't have to – I can just forget about it all. Forget about him. Can I? But do I really want to be with someone who takes me for granted like that? Does that really matter? It's just his way – it doesn't mean he doesn't care about me. Do I want to throw it all away just because he's got a bad attitude? Or because I have?_

"This stupid pride of mine," Raito muttered to himself, "I'll give it up."

He straightened his shoulders as much as possible given the discomfort he was in and set off toward the elevator. _Besides, do I really think I can't change him if I put my mind to it? Of course I can!_


	17. Chapter 17

_Sadly the last chapter is here – thanks to everyone that's read this and for all the amazing reviews – I think I enjoy the reviews as much as people like reading the story! :)_

_Sorry for the wait – it wasn't helped when I had a Homer moment halfway through and forgot that Raito got his shoulder dislocated. Had to go back and fix almost everything he'd done. Anyway, it's a long one. Chapter, I mean, get your minds out of the gutter! XD_

_There will be a sequel – Death By Chocolate. I'm going to finish up some of the stuff that's been waiting too long to be finished and then I'll get on with that. It has a basic plot and some characters and so on, but it's probably more complex than this so will take a bit more planning._

_Only You last chapter will be up soon for those who are waiting. I have to make sure it gets done right or Miss Doll is going to do something unspeakable to me XD_

_There's a picture of some of the suspects from this in my DA gallery as well :) Oh dearie dear, I realised that Duhamel looks – and acts – almost exactly like someone I know. So let us pray that he never, ever reads this! XD_

SPOILERS: It's AU so none really.

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own Death Note or its characters. I own some handcuffs but I've lost the damn key so gods help anyone I take a fancy to, they'll be stuck here for ever XD_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

"Oh, Raito-kun," Near said, as he opened the door to L's suite. "Come in."

"Thank you," Raito said, wondering when they'd got onto first-name terms. Not that he minded – that thought drifted away as he went into the room to be confronted with L sitting in his usual curled position on the couch.

"Near – " Raito began, turning to the boy only to find he wasn't there any more, having closed the door with himself on the outside.

"Let me take that from you, Raito-kun," L got up and came over to the bewildered young man. "You look uncomfortable there."

"Thanks, Ryuuzaki – I mean L," Raito mumbled, letting L take the laptop from under his arm. This close he could smell the detective, a sweetish, clean fresh smell like mandarins and lemons, as if he'd just been in the shower. He unconsciously took a deep breath, then realised L was staring at him quizzically and felt his face start to heat up.

"I thought you'd, uh, gone somewhere," he said.

"No, not yet, Raito-kun," L said. "I don't plan to leave until tomorrow morning." He returned to the couch, laying the laptop on a nearby table. "Sit down, won't you?" he said. "Please."

Raito walked across the room and sat on the couch, not too near to L, not too far away.

"Matt told me you were aware of my dual identities," L said, conversationally. "How long have you known?"

"I'm not quite sure, L," Raito said. "It dawned on me gradually. Your uniqueness is hard to disguise."

"I'll take that as a compliment, shall I?" L smiled.

"Uh – yes?" Raito said, still not quite sure why L was here when he was supposed to be somewhere else with Watari. _Damn Near! He lied to me. Lying bastard! What does he expect me to do now? Apologise? What?_

"How long were you going to wait before you mentioned to me that you knew who I was?" L asked.

"I thought you'd pick up on it by yourself, eventually," Raito said. "I wasn't making a big effort to hide that I knew."

"I did suspect," L said. "You seemed too friendly with me – if that's the right word. When I was talking to you through the laptop. I didn't imagine you as a two-timing kind of person, so it was reasonable to suppose that you suspected or realised who I was."

"What about Matt?" Raito demanded, having decided that attack was the best form of defence. "You were coming on to him – and suggesting that I have sex with him!"

"I was attempting to put you off the scent, Raito-kun," L said. "I wanted to differentiate between possessive Ryuuzaki and hedonistic L. Besides, I didn't notice you objecting."

"Matt knew that I knew," Raito said. "We were just playing you. We've no interest in each other that way."

"I'm glad to hear it," L said. "Apart from any personal interest I may have, Matt has other entanglements that make him a poor choice for a prospective partner."

Raito nodded thoughtfully. _What does he mean any personal interest he _may_ have? Does he still have one or doesn't he? _

"I have been gathering information on the Death By Chocolate case, Raito-kun," L said. "What do you think about this body business? What kind of person covers a mouldering old corpse with chocolate?"

"Beauty without, corruption within?" Raito mused. _Well, at least he's talking to me reasonably. Even if it's about dead bodies._

"You think it's some kind of comment on – what?" L said. "Himself? Other people? Humanity in general?"

"Betrayal, maybe."

"Would you like some tea, Raito-kun?" L stood and went over to the door of the kitchenette, then turned, leaning in the doorway, one foot raising to rub at the other ankle, his hands fiddling with the hem of his shirt. "Are you thinking that perhaps the perpetrator feels that he has been let down by society? That he was misled by his expectations and later became exposed to the underlying unpleasantness beneath the surface of the social order?"

"Not society, no, I don't think so," Raito said, feeling his face flush again as L's fidgeting fingers raised the bottom of his shirt, revealing smooth, creamy-white skin. "He's obviously intelligent, to have planned and executed all of this. I don't think he could be unaware that society is not all sweetness and light. Maybe he's hinting at some kind of personal betrayal or trauma."

"Stating or suggesting that he's been lied to or made a fool of in some way?"

"Suggesting," Raito said. "I don't feel as if he's completely cynical. The robberies – all taking place at practically the same time of night, in the same way, it's almost as if he's taunting the police to catch him. And the very act of leaving the corpses, grisly as it may be. He didn't kill anybody, he used corpses that were, um, available. So he didn't want to murder to make his point. The whole thing almost seems like a game or a challenge. Gruesome but playful."

"I see Raito has also been doing some research," L said with a smile, then turned and went into the kitchen, calling back, "would he like to estimate how much money was stolen from the banks?"

"None, or just expenses," Raito replied.

"Close enough," L said. "A sum amounting to several thousand euros was taken from each bank and donations in the exact amounts stolen were made to various charities the next day."

"We need to know which charities!" Raito said excitedly. "That could tell us a lot about his interests or what he thinks is important."

"Good point," L said, coming back with a tea tray. He placed it on a table which he shuffled across so they could both reach it.

"Did they get the money back?" Raito asked, leaning over to pour himself and L some tea. "You'd better put your own sugar in, I notice you don't always take the same amount."

"Thank you, Raito-kun. No, the charities have mostly been obdurate about retaining their donations. They say it could be a coincidence that the amounts are the same and that there is no way of telling if the money is the same money that was taken."

"Serial numbers – " Raito began.

"Of course they are not letting anyone check up on that," L smiled, picked up a notepad and pen and scribbled something down. "The general excuse seems to be that the money is already banked and has therefore become anonymous."

"No use as evidence then," Raito sighed, then found himself distracted as L leaned across to take a cookie from the tray, his shirt riding up to show more of his smooth pale skin.

"No, none at all," L remarked through a mouthful of cookie, twiddling his pen between his fingers until it suddenly fell to the floor. He dropped to his knees and began searching for it under the couch. Raito smiled rather wistfully, taking the opportunity to ogle the detective's attractive behind, stuck up in the air as he crawled half beneath the couch. Raito sighed again, wondering what L would do if he just reached out and touched – the tempting body part wiggled at him as if it was aware of his intention.

"Can't you find your pen, L?" Raito asked.

"It's – somewhere under here – " L muttered from beneath the seating.

"Are you trying to be seductive there?" Raito guessed.

L scuffled rapidly backward and got to his knees, staring intently at Raito. "Is it working?"

"Are you planning to give me a pity fuck?" Raito asked sadly.

"I was thinking more along the lines of make-up sex, Raito-kun," L said. "It's supposed to be very good."

"What, you don't want – I mean, are we still – " Raito faltered to a halt.

"Does Raito-kun want to break up with me?" L's face fell suddenly.

"No, of course not!" Raito exclaimed. "But – I thought perhaps you would."

"Why should I want to do that, Raito-kun?" L looked appalled at the thought. "It's taken me going on for thirty years to find somebody who suits me, why would I abandon them just because of a disagreement? I'm sure we are both reasonable enough to deal with our differences without such extreme measures – wouldn't you agree?"

"Look in your laptop," Raito suggested.

L put his head on one side, then shuffled on his knees to the laptop and opened it. Took out the piece of paper and read. _**I'm sorry. Call me.**_

"I am also sorry, Raito," L murmured. "I was impolite."

"I wouldn't have minded so much normally," Raito said. "I was feeling a little stressed with the pain and the kidnapping and so on."

"Raito-kun rescued me," L said, blithely ignoring any contribution made by the rest of the police force or his own assistants. "And sustained injury while doing it."

"I wouldn't let anyone hurt you, L," Raito said. "How did they manage to kidnap you, anyway?"

"I'd rather not say," L stared down at his hands.

"Tell me," Raito said.

"Um, it was Lee. I hadn't seen him before and he came to the door."

"So you just let him in?" Raito said in surprise.

"I didn't see the harm in it," L muttered. "He said he was conducting a survey."

"A survey? On what?"

"Cookie preferences," L said so quietly Raito could hardly hear him.

"Uh – L – "

"I know!" L looked up, shamefaced. "I was suffering sugar deprivation, Raito-kun! Watari had gone to find me some cake – it seemed a pleasant way of alleviating the pangs, debating the relative merits of chocolate chip over oatmeal and raisin!"

"And then they grabbed you?"

"They injected me with something!" L said indignantly. "Probably some kind of benzodiazepine variant – I woke up in a coffin! That's _never_ something you expect to do!"

"Really, L, you need someone to take care of you!" Raito declared.

"No I – " L began. "Yes, Raito-kun, I do. Watari can't always be around."

"Never mind," Raito said. "At least you're not hurt. So, uh, how about that make-up sex?"

"Raito-kun can be top if he wishes," L said, peering up at Raito through his shaggy locks.

"What?" Raito stared at the older man. "Why?"

"I formed the impression that Raito has the view that I see him as some kind of possession," L reached out, laying his hand over the younger man's. "That was not my intention when I suggested that he would come to Belgium with me. I had simply started thinking of us as – as some kind of single unit. I realise that was presumptuous – "

"No, L," Raito said, turning his hand to clasp the detective's. "You can see us that way if you want to. I'd like to come to Belgium with you. And you don't have to let me be top to persuade me to do it."

"But I want to!" L said, shuffling closer to Raito.

"You do?" Raito reached out and put his arm around L, pulling him close and kissing him passionately. _Ah God, his lips! His lips! His – where did my mind go! Oh, hell, his tongue!_

"Actually, I thought perhaps Raito would be a gentleman and say we should wait," L said, rather breathlessly when they finally broke apart.

"No chance, L," Raito smirked.

"There was a sixty-seven per cent chance that this would be the result," L nodded in what looked like resignation. "I have some lube in my pocket."

"How much lube did you buy, L?" Raito asked.

"A lot." L said with a spiky smile. "I thought it would come in useful since Raito makes me very aroused all the time."

"_All_ the time, L?" Raito smiled.

"Yes, it's extremely distracting," L confessed. "Even when I am thinking about a case, there Raito is in the back of my mind, with his sexy legs spread open and his – "

"Excuse me, whose sexy legs spread open?" Raito demanded.

"Oh, well, mine I suppose, but in my fantasies it's usually yours, Raito." L said, very slightly sulkily.

"Perhaps after today you'll have some different fantasies to amuse you," Raito ran his hand over the other man's back, hoping to calm his obvious nervousness.

"Should we not go in the bedroom, Raito?" L wriggled away slightly.

"Why not right here?" Raito leaned forward, capturing his lover again one-handed, and gently pushing him over to lie on the couch.

"Here?" L squeaked. "No, Raito, that's – sleazy! It's as bad as doing it in the back of my car!"

"You want to do it in the back of your car?" Raito's eyes lit up with a predatory glow. _Hell, I shouldn't tease him like this, but he looks so scared – what's wrong with me, that should make me feel like being kind to him! Be kind, Raito! Be – protective and, and what's that other word? Yes. Nice. Be nice._

"No," L was protesting. "No cars or couches or – nnnhhm!" he fell silent as Raito managed to slide on top of his writhing form, one knee slipping between the detective's legs, their hips pressed together.

"Shh, Ryuuzaki," Raito murmured. "Kiss me."

"But – " L was silenced as Raito's lips captured his own, moving over them possessively, longingly, his tongue tracing the curve of the detective's mouth, his one available hand coming up to rest along the line of L's jaw, holding him gently in place. _This is better. I'll seduce him. Make him desperate. Have him begging for it. He'll be on his knees to me by the time I'm done. In every way imaginable._

Raito smiled as his lover's arms came up around him, aroused by his thoughts of submissive L worshipping him. He stood suddenly, bending to grab L's hand and pull him to his feet.

"What!" the detective gave him an offended look, the effect of which was ruined as he twined his arms lovingly around Raito's neck.

"You're right," Raito said. "It's bedtime."

He tugged the detective into his bedroom, sliding his arm around the slim waist and backing him up against the king-size bed.

"Oh!" L said as he ran out of room and suddenly sat down. Raito smiled and grabbed L under his knees, adjusting him into a lying position, then joining him on the bed and gathering the wide-eyed man into his arm. He leant over L, holding him possessively and trying to repress the smirk of triumph that threatened to creep across his face.

"Raito-kun is enjoying this," L grumbled. "He is thinking of me as his submissive victim."

"Me?" Raito attempted innocence. _Damn! He sees straight through me, how does he do that?_ "Hardly a victim, Ryuuzaki, since I plan to ensure you enjoy it as much or even more than I do."

"That doesn't alter your state of mind, Raito," L said. "You like to see me like this, pinned underneath you, apparently helpless."

"L, I don't – " Raito stared down at his lover. "If you don't want to – "

"Raito, what kind of dominant _are_ you?" L demanded huffily. "You're not supposed to offer me escape!"

"I just want to be sure you don't intend to defy me," Raito recovered himself.

"How could I?" L asked, pitifully. "Here I am, held down forcibly – I _said,_ held down forcibly, Raito – "

Raito shrugged, laughing, and grabbed both L's wrists in his hand, pinning them over his head.

"That's better," L said. "I hope that's a laugh of sadistic glee and you're not just finding this overwhelmingly amusing."

"Bit of both," Raito confessed. "Especially since I only have the one hand to hold you with."

"That just shows how commanding a nature you have, Raito," L said. "Perhaps I need to put you more in the mood. Would you like me to scream?"

"Oh, you'll scream," Raito leaned down, ran his tongue slowly and lovingly over L's parted lips. "But not yet. We have a way to go before we get to that."

"You're scaring me, Raito," L's eyes were bigger than Raito had ever seen them.

"Fuck, L, that's hot!" the young man exclaimed.

"Raito thinks I'm hot?" L shifted lazily on the bed, his hips somehow making contact with his lover's, causing a bolt of arousal to shoot through Raito's body.

"Raito thinks it's time to see some skin," Raito said, pulling a pillow over L's outstretched wrists in the hope that he'd take the hint and consider himself still restrained. He then reached down to pull up the detective's shirt, revealing his pale, sculpted chest.

"Mhm, no..." L moaned, rather unconvincingly.

"Mm, yes," Raito contradicted, bending to press his lips to the creamy swell of his lover's pectoral, a gentle kiss that deepened, hardened and became almost savage before he lifted his head to look with pleasure at the dark red mark that stained L's porcelain skin.

"Ahh, Raito," L whimpered. "That hurt."

"So will this," Raito leaned down again, taking a nipple into his mouth, sucking hard on it, using his teeth, gauging the pressure he needed to exert by listening to the sounds he elicited from L's mouth, moans and gasps and mewls of mingled pain and pleasure. He brought his hand up and pinched the other pink bud, twisting it quite cruelly.

"Stop, Raito!" L exclaimed. "No!" his protests belied by the rampant erection Raito could feel pressing against his thigh.

The younger man just laughed, sliding down his lover's body, using his mouth to caress the smooth, silken skin that stretched taut beneath him as L arched toward him. Making a trail of soft licks and kisses over the firm abs and tracing the line of soft hair that led from the detective's navel down to his groin.

"Ah, Raito," L murmured happily. "Eat me like cake."

"My honey cake," Raito agreed, devoting his attention to unfastening his lover's jeans one-handed. L wriggled, helping Raito to pull them off.

"Raito is so aggressive," he remarked. "Tearing my clothes off me."

"I hope you're not objecting," Raito said, giving the jeans a vigorous tug. _There, that must feel more like tearing them off. So L likes it rough? Who would have thought?_

"I wouldn't dare," L said, reaching down to run his fingers through Raito's hair as the younger man repositioned himself between his lover's thighs.

"You're beautiful, L," he said, gazing in pleasure at the detective, his angelically cute face and slim, masculine body covered only by the baggy shirt that was pushed up almost to his neck. He ran his hand over L's long, shapely legs, admiring them, his erection tenting almost painfully in his pants as he considered the position those perfect legs were in, parted around Raito's hips.

He stroked his fingers up the detective's inner thigh, eliciting a pleasurable sigh, then bent to nuzzle his face into L's thick bush of black pubic hair, inhaling the warm, musky scent of him. Lifted his head a little to lick suddenly along the length of L's large and throbbing erection.

"Hnnh," the detective muttered inarticulately, then gave a loud moan as Raito's tongue lapped over the head of his precum-slicked cock.

"You taste good, L," Raito found himself breathless, eager. "Undo my pants for me."

L pushed himself off the bed and obliged, releasing little Raito, both of them looking down as he sprang impatiently from confinement.

"It's not as big as yours," Raito said, thoughtfully.

"It's not what you've got," L said, "it's what you do with it."

"I've always thought that was a statement that applied more to mental attributes than physical ones," Raito said.

"If it was as big as mine, Raito, I might be having more second thoughts than I already am."

"You're not allowed to have second thoughts, L, it's too late for that," Raito said, shuffling back down the bed, unbuttoning his shirt as he went, then shrugging it off his bandaged shoulder and letting it fall from his other arm.

"Raito is so masterful," L widened his eyes admiringly.

"You really do read romance novels, don't you!" Raito said, laughing.

"Only Lois Lexington's," L said. "It's always fascinating to watch a genius at play."

"Or playing with himself?" Raito said, lowering his hand to touch himself, watching L's enraptured gaze as long pianist's fingers encircled his length, moving delicately up and down. _Don't get carried away with this, he likes it, but – watching him – fuck, I won't last long if I do anything else with it!_

"Pass me the lube, L," Raito said, waiting until the raven-haired one had retrieved his jeans and pulled the tube from his pocket. He took it and realised – "L, you're going to have to help here. Open it and put some on my fingers."

"Your wish is my command," L said, gazing adoringly up at his lover and unscrewing the top from the lube. "I only want to do whatever my Raito asks of me."

"Glad to hear it," Raito said, lowering his now lubed fingers, his gaze intent on L's slightly flushed, slightly fearful face, eyes wide, lips parted to allow the passage of his rapid breathing.

Raito's fingers reached their goal, sliding over soft puckered folds, gently pressing, one sliding into hot tightness. L gasped and lay back, clutching at the sheets.

"Strange," he muttered. "It feels strange."

"It'll get better," Raito told him, moving his finger in and out, adding another one after a few moments. L's breath was coming in gentle pants as he writhed against the intrusion, pale skin stained with pink, softened with sweat.

Raito withdrew his fingers which seemed to be becoming rather dry, reached out for the lube which L had left on the bed and carelessly squeezed it over the covers. He dabbled his fingers in it then returned to his lover, this time sliding three fingers into him, deeper than before.

"Nhhn!" L's face contorted in pain.

"Shhh, just a moment, bear with it," Raito reassured him. He probed around inside, stretching the tight passage, exploring.

"Oh, God, Raito!" L exclaimed, arching his back off the bed, eyes screwing shut suddenly.

"Yes!" Raito said, searching for the spot he'd just contacted and finding it again, watching the delicious detective move on the bed, ebony hair flying from side to side as he moaned in ecstasy, pushing himself down onto Raito's invading, teasing fingers.

"Ahh, Raito, please!" L exclaimed. "Uhhh! Yes, do that!"

Raito grinned, tempted to let his lover go all the way, to make him come just by the tormenting pressure of his fingers on the other man's prostate. _But then perhaps he won't want to let me – well, he probably would. But he'll like it better if we both do it the first time, ne?_

He reluctantly withdrew his fingers from the now not-so-tight ring of muscle and reached for the lube.

"Let me," L said, squeezing lube onto his own hand and reaching out to stroke it gently over Raito's throbbing dick, coating it liberally with the slippery substance.

"Mhm, L," Raito murmured. "Lay back, now."

"How are we going to do this?" L asked.

"I was thinking face to face," Raito said.

"Raito wishes to have my legs wrapped around his neck?" L said, suggestively.

"Nhn, yes!" Raito said. "But no, my shoulder – "

"I should sit on you?" L suggested. "Like you did with me?"

"No – if you – wait," Raito began pulling at the pillows, indicating to L that he should lift himself so they could be slid underneath his lower back. "If the angle's right," the young detective muttered, "We can do it like this. More pillows, please – " he arranged the detective to his satisfaction, hips tilted upwards, legs spread to the side, feet also raised up on pillows.

"I feel decidedly wanton being put on display like this, Raito," L commented.

"You look it," Raito said, almost overwhelmed at the sight before him, desperately trying to keep his concentration on the task in hand, how to effect entry into L's hot, willing body – he shuddered at the thought – and balance himself with only one hand available. He shuffled forward on his knees, shoving the pillows before him so that L was perched on his lap. Raito leaned forward, grasping himself, guiding himself toward the older man's entrance.

"Urhh!" L murmured as the head of Raito's cock rubbed against him, pressing, pushing, then sliding suddenly inside. The detective cried out and Raito groaned at the feeling of being encased in hot, tight, pulsing flesh. He shifted himself, bending over his lover, L's hands coming up to hold him, support him as he thrust forward, moaning as his cock slid deeper into the virgin passage, his whole self concentrated into that one point of pressure and constriction and slippery heat, entering slowly, holding himself back.

"Oh, fuck!" L exclaimed suddenly.

Raito gave a grunt of pleasure, driving himself fully into his lover's body, his attempts at patience undone by the unexpected profanity.

"Ah, yes, Raito, do me!" L gasped, hands tightening on the younger man's shoulders, fingers gripping tight enough to bruise, rough, bitten nails digging in sharply.

Raito cried out, somewhere between pain and pleasure, pulling back then pushing deeply back into the warm, welcoming depth of his beloved, feeling L's legs coming up to wrap around his waist, possessive and encouraging.

L stared up, his face contorted with passion as Raito looked down at him, their eyes meeting and holding each other as they set up a rhythm, the bucking of Raito's hips matched with L's movement against him, demanding and urgent as they both strained against each other, desperate for closeness, oneness, everything forgotten but the need to be joined in pulsing, rocking, squeezing, thrusting union.

L writhed, sweating and panting, babbling an incoherent mix of French, English and Japanese as Raito plundered his tight hot passage unmercifully.

"Hahh! Light – Raito... baises moi... yes! Ahhh... Raito – watashi no tachi desu ... tu es mon tres bon coup... mon beau ange... hai, more, Raito!"

Raito groaned, his movements becoming more rapid, the sounds, the words, the constant friction of L's smooth, silky muscle against him driving him crazy, bringing him closer to the edge. He tossed his sweat-dampened hair off his forehead and rammed himself again and again into L's body, watching the detective arch up against him, black locks flying over white sheets as he moaned and whimpered, words lost at last in a shriek of pleasure as Raito assaulted his pleasure centre again and again.

"Yes, come for me, L!" Raito gasped, aware that he'd reached the point of no return. "Show me how much you like me fucking you hard like this!"

"Nhhn, haah, Rai – " L gave an abandoned scream, his hips thrusting down hard against and around Raito, tightening and squeezing around him as his huge cock throbbed and released, jets of white fluid spattering over both of them, clinging on to Raito as he came, his eyes, wide with ecstasy, darkened with lust, fixed immovably on his lover's face.

Raito threw his head back, letting go, pumping his hips as his climax shuddered through him, moaning L's name as he spurted deep within the man's body, thrusting hard and fast, the delicious friction of L's tightening, engulfing walls shattering his thoughts, making him cry out in ecstasy.

He would have collapsed if L's shaking arms hadn't partially supported him, letting him down gently onto the other man's body, his softening cock slipping slowly out. He wrapped one arm around the hot, sweat-slicked body beneath him and lay there, mindlessly drinking in the heat and smell and presence of his lover.

"Cookie," L murmured after some time had passed.

"Sweetheart," Raito responded.

"No, Raito, I had a cookie in my pocket somewhere," L said.

"It'll be crumby and covered in fluff," Raito said.

"I can pick the fluff off."

"Disgusting. I'll go and get you a clean one." Raito rolled off L's body and attempted to stand.

"Oh," he said as he suddenly sat back down.

"What's wrong, Raito?" L leaned up, looking concerned. "Are you ill?"

"My legs don't work," Raito said.

"I'll go," L said, swinging his legs over the side of the bed and standing up. "Wooh." he sat down again.

"Maybe you should have the fluffy cookie for now," Raito conceded.

L nodded and retrieved it from his jeans, Raito watching in some interest. _Maybe his jeans aren't really so much too big for him. Maybe it's just all the stuff he puts in his pockets that makes them seem so baggy. There seems to be nothing he doesn't put in there. I wouldn't be surprised if he brought a bicycle or a three course meal out of those pockets. Is my mind usually this surreal? No..._

"Told you I'd make you scream," he said, smiling at L as the detective finished his cookie.

"That was extremely pleasant, Raito," L murmured lazily. "You can do that again if you want to."

"Yes, L," Raito replied, smiling across at the older man. "I'll do whatever you want, you know that." _Huh? Wait a minute... he's supposed to be offering to do whatever I want by now! This hasn't gone exactly as I planned it! Oh well, fuck it. He's cute and he's mine, what does it matter who does what for who anyway?_

"L?" he said. "All that stuff you said about thinking of us as a single unit, that was so much bullshit, wasn't it?"

"Why would Raito-kun think that?" L's eyes widened into an innocent stare.

"You're selfish, paranoid, secretive and self-protective," Raito stated. "It'd probably take years before you'd think of us as having such an intimate connection."

"This is unusual!" L huffed, drawing himself up on the bed into his usual crouching posture, then wincing and abandoning it for a more conventional sitting position. "Is there no lie I can tell Raito-kun that he will believe?"

"Probably not," Raito said. "You don't have to lie, do you? If you don't want to say something, you could just tell me you don't want to."

"And then Raito would make me tell him," L disagreed. "I have seen how aggressive he is. Besides, you would not have been pleased if I told you I thought you were mine and should accompany me."

"What if I agreed with you?" Raito rolled onto his stomach and gave the detective a sultry look.

"Raito was angry with me," L said. "He did not appreciate that I would want him constantly in my presence and available."

Raito laughed. "Really, L, that's unsubtle. Have you never heard of romance?"

"I have not informed Raito as to what I want him available for," L murmured in a low, silky tone, reaching out to gather the younger man into his arms. "What if I were to tell Raito that I want to take him with me so that I may treasure him and shower him with gifts and caresses and have him help me with my cases and make love to him for hours every night in every possible way we have ever dreamed of?"

"I'd say you're a damn sexy man and I have no objection at all," Raito said softly into his lover's ear.

"That was easy," L pulled back to peer into Raito's face. "Is Raito not going to argue with me or say I'm treating him like a possession?"

"No," Raito said.

"Why not?" L asked suspiciously.

"Because – " Raito bit his lip, his face flushing slightly. "I just don't want you to go away without me."

"You do realise that I live a very dangerous life, Raito?" L said. "Perhaps it is selfish of me to ask you to share it with me."

"What!" Raito stared in surprise. "This – this isn't just about us working on the chocolate case together?"

"Does Raito not remember what I said to him on the phone?" L asked. "I said that I thought the better I knew him, the more I would like him. Given that situation, it is hardly likely that a trip to Belgium is going to satisfy my need for his company."

"Oh," Raito said. "Well – yes."

"I'm glad you agree," L said, smiling, and ignoring the fact that Raito wasn't being specific about what he was agreeing to. "Now I believe it is my turn to be seme."

"We're taking turns?" Raito said. "What if I want another turn?"

"Since I am now seme, you are not allowed to disagree with my request," L said firmly, disengaging himself from Raito and leaning down over the side of the bed to retrieve his jeans.

"That's what you call a request?" Raito gave the other man a look of disbelief.

"No," L put his head on one side, consideringly. "Raito is correct. It was not a request."

"So you think I should just do whatever you want, because it's your – your turn?"

"What I think, Raito," L crept forward on all fours until his face was only a few inches from Raito's, an unholy light in his eyes, "is that since my beautiful angel already has one hand bound up in a sling, he would look most attractive should I handcuff the other one to my bed, and spank him until he screams."

"Uhnn!" Raito said, which wasn't what he'd thought he was going to say. He tried again. "Hnnh, L!"

"Exactly, Raito," said L bringing out a pair of handcuffs from his jeans pocket, laying them on the bed, then disordering Raito's neatly folded pants completely as he grabbed them and pulled the belt out from its loops.

"L is a cruel seme," Raito said, eyes widening as he watched the detective's preparations. "Do I get a safety word?"

"No, I don't think so, Raito," L said with a wicked smile. "You will just have to trust me."

Raito opened his mouth to disagree then paused as logic, commonsense, lust and some other feeling he really didn't want to put a name to yet, decided to have a knock-down drag-out fight somewhere in the backroom of his brain. _He wants me. To keep. He wants – this isn't about dominance. If it was, he wouldn't have let me do what we just did. This is about trust. He wants to see if I'll let him – play with me. Make me helpless. It's strange, but it means something to him. He wants to trust me, but I have to do it first so that he can._

"Whatever you say, L," Raito said, holding out his hand for the cuff.

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

_Hope you all enjoyed the ride... here's a translation of L's sex ramblings :)_

"_Hahh! Light – Raito... fuck me... yes! Ahhh... Raito – my seme ... my excellent lover(lit – my very good fuck)... my beautiful angel... yes, more, Raito!"_

On which happy note, I leave you until the next chocolate-coated tale of the pair that put the fun in dysfunctional...

FINIS 


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